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THE SEXUAL LIFE OF SAVAGES

BOOKS BY THE SAME AUTHOR

The Family Among the Australian Aborigines. London: University
of London Press (out of print), 191 3.

Primitive Religion and Social Differentiation. Cracow (in Polish,
out of print), 1915.

■^'The Natives of Mailu." Adelaide: Trans, of the R. Soc. of S. Jus-
tralia for 1915. Pp. 494-706. 1915.

Argonauts of the Western Pacific. London: Geo. Routledge and
Sonsj New York: E. P. Dutton and Co. 1922.

"Magic, Science, and Religion," in Essays collected by J. Needham,
under the title Science, Religion, and Reality. London: The Sheldon
Press J New York and Toronto: The Macmillan Co. 1926.

Myth in Primitive Psychology. London: Kegan Paul and Co.j New
York: W. W. Norton and Co. 1926.

Crime and Custom in Savage Society. London: Kegan Paul and Co.j
New York: Harcourt, Brace and Co. 1926.

The Father in Primitive Psychology. London: Keg-an Paul and Co.j
New York: W. W. Norton and Co. 1927.

:Sex and Repression in Savage Society. London: Kegan Paul and Co.j
New York: Harcourt, Brace and Co. 1927.

THE SEXUAL LIFE
OF SAVAGES

in North-We stern Melanesia

AN ETHNOGRAPHIC ACCOUNT OF
COURTSHIP, MARRIAGE AND FAMILY
LIFE AMONG THE NATIVES OF THE
TROBRIAND ISLANDS, BRITISH NEW
GUINEA

BPvONISLAW MALINOWSKI

PH. D.J D.SC.

Complete in One Volume

WITH A PREFACE BY HAVELOCK ELLIS

READERS LEAGUE OF AMERICA

Distributed by

EUGENICS PUBLISHING COMPANY

New York

2S896±

ROBERT MONO EXPEDITION TO NEW GUINEA,
19 14—19 1 8

{3-/1/
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Printed in ihe U. S. A,

"«-' o

To my friend
E. POWYS MATHERS

PREFACE

By Havelock Ellis

The sexual life of savages has long awaited its natural
historian. Owing to sex taboos, that weigh at least as
much on the civilized as on the savage mind, this subject
has always been veiled in mystery. The mystery has been
fascinating or sombre according to the general attitude to
savagery that happened to prevail. In the eighteenth
century it was fascinating. That century, especially in its
French mode, virtually discovered what is loosely and in-
correctly termed "Primitive Man," and found his finest
embodiment in the new and Paradisiacal world of America
and Oceania. These French voyagers and missionaries
(though there were some notable but more sober-minded
English and other sailors among them) were delighted
and intoxicated as these strange manners and customs,
often so gracious and fantastic, opened out before their
astonished vision. They were incapable of understanding
them, and they had no time to penetrate below the sur-
face, but the enthusiastic impressions they honestly set
down seemed a revelation to the Parisian world with its
own widely unlike artificialities and conventions. Then
was developed the conception of the "noble" savage of
whom Tacitus had caught a glimpse in primeval German
forests living in "a state of Nature." The nineteenth
century grew contemptuous of what seemed to it Rous-

vii

PREFACE

seau's superficial and imaginative vision of the natural
man. But Rousseau had really been a careful student of
the narratives of explorers in his time, as there is clear
evidence to show. The conclusions he drew were not
more extravagant than those at the opposite extreme
drawn by later generations and sometimes still persisting
to-day. Diderot, likewise, when he wrote his famous
Sufflefnent au Voyage de Bougainville y to exhibit to his
fellow-countrymen the superior reasonableness in matters
of sexual ethics of the Tahitian, brought forward various
correct facts- — already set down in the attractive narrative
of the great French navigator — ^but misleadingly, because
he was ignorant of the social framework to which they
belonged.

In the nineteenth century the more sombre view pre-
vailed. The explorers were now mainly English, and
they carried with them the Anglo-Saxon Puritanism for
which all sexual customs that are unfamiliar are either
shocking or disgusting. "Obscene" was the word com-
monly used, and it was left to the reader's imagination to
picture what that might mean. The sexual behaviour of
savages seemed mostly unspeakable. The urethral sub-
incision practised by some Australian tribes was mysteri-
ously named "the terrible rite." A similar mutilation of
the nose or ear, or anywhere a little higher up or a little
lower down, would not have seemed "terrible" j but at
that particular spot it aroused a shuddering and shame-
faced awe.

In the twentieth century we have moved towards a
calmer attitude. We are learning to view our own sex

vijj

PREFACE

taboos a little less solemnly. At the same time we are
acquiring a more scientific spirit in the investigation of the
few remaining peoples yet not too completely under the
influence of our own civilization, regarding them no
longer with either adulation or contempt, but as valuable
witnesses to unfamiliar aspects of our common human
nature. The Cambridge Expedition to Torres Straits
with its scientifically trained observers, and all that that
expedition led to in subsequent observations in other parts
of the world by such distinguished workers as Rivers and
Seligman, may be regarded as a landmark. But we still
pined in vain for a picture of the sexual life of any un-
spoilt people. One or two investigators, like Roth in
Queensland, noted a few precise objective facts of the sex
life, and more recently Felix Bryk, in his Neger-EroSy
has produced a valuable study of the erotic life in Equa-
torial Africa, but it has not been easy to find any really
comprehensive picture.

Such a task needed, indeed, a rare combination of quali-
fications j not only a scientific equipment but a familiarity
with various new fertilizing ideas, not always considered
scientific, which have of late been thrown into the anthro-
pological field j a long and intimate knowledge of the
people to be investigated and of their language, for it is
not only in civilization that the sexual life tends to be shy
and recessive j not least, there was required in the inves-
tigator a freedom alike from the traditions of Anglo-
Saxon Puritanism, however estimable in their own place,
and from the almost equally unfortunate reactions to
which the revolt against those traditions may lead.

PREFACE

All these qualifications are in a rare degree combined
in Dr. Malinowski : the scientific outfit, the sensitive intel-
ligence, the patience in observation, the sympathetic in-
sight. He is known by numerous monographs on various
sociological aspects of savage culture, mostly based on his
research among the Trobriand Islanders off the east coast
of New Guinea, among whom he lived in close touch for
two years. His Argonauts of the Western Pacific — the
original and elaborate analysis of the peculiar kula ex-
change system of the Trobriands — is recognized as a bril-
liant achievement of ethnographic research. It is, indeed,
more than merely ethnographic, and as Sir James Frazer,
who introduced the book, pointed out, it is characteristic
of Dr. Malinowski's method that he takes full account of
the complexity of human nature. An institution that, at
the first glance, might seem to be merely economic, is
found in his searching hands to be not merely commercial,
but bound up with magic and ministering to the emotional
and sesthetic needs of the people who exercise it.

In the field of sex, as I have remarked, it is only to-day
that investigation has become possible. And this not sim-
ply because our sex taboos have at last lost something of
their stringency. It is only to-day that it has here be-
come possible to ask those right questions which, as Bacon
said, are the half of knowledge. A quarter of a century
ago the study of sex was merely the study of extravagant
aberrations, and, outside this, just sentimental rhapsody.
It has now become — accordingly as we approach it —
either a field of natural history, to be studied in the ordi-
nary spirit of the field naturalist, or else a department of

PREFACE

psychological dynamics where forces are at play which
may often be traced beneath the surface and take on
strange forms and influence even those modes of activity
which seem most remote from sex. In this department,
the genius of Freud — as some think, in ways that are
exaggerated — has given an impetus to the study of the
sexual impulse and to its possible manifestations even in
the myths and customs of savages. To these develop-
ments Dr. Malinowski is fully alive. He was even pre-
pared at one time to be much more nearly a Freudian than
we can now describe him. To-day he is neither Freudian
nor anti-Freudian J he recognizes the fertilizing value of
Freud's ideas, and he is prepared to utilize them whenever
they seem helpful in elucidating the phenomena under
investigation. These phenomena he views with a char-
acteristically wide outlook 5 while not neglecting the pre-
cise technique of the erotic art among the Trobriand
Islanders, he duly investigates their whole sexual life in
its aesthetic, emotional, family, and social implications.
Now that he has shown the way, other students doubtless
will be inspired to follow. But in this field not all who
are called are chosen. The special combination of needed
qualifications can rarely be found, and meanwhile the op-
portunities are every year diminishing. It may safely be
said that The Sexual Life of Savages in North-western
Melanesia will become a classic of which the value must
increase with the passage of time.

So far I have been speaking of this work in its relation
to science. But I believe that it also has wider relations.
It may interest not only those who are concerned with

PREFACE

origins and with what they may perhaps consider exotic
forms of social life, but also those who are concerned with
the present or the future, and the forms of social life at
home.

We often overlook the fact, which Is yet well estab-
lished, that the rate and level of evolution are not at
every point equal. We do not place the negro at the
summit of human development 3 but at some points he is
further evolved in physical form than the white man.
Or, if we take a wider range, it has long been clear that
the forefoot of the horse has reached a higher stage of
evolution than that of other animals in general much
higher in the scale. So, also, on the psychic side, we are
accustomed to regard the civilization of classic antiquity
as in some respects higher than our own which yet has pro-
gressed much further along other lines.

In the life of sex we are concerned with an impulse of
profound interest to mankind from the first. It occupies
a field, one may note, which may be cultivated even by
peoples whose level of culture is, in many important re-
spects, far from high. It may even be said that an absorp-
tion in other fields of culture is actually detrimental to
culture in the sexual field, and, as we know, a marvellous
expansion of the mechanical arts and exalted achievements
in the intellectual sphere may co-exist with a sexual cul-
ture thrust back into conventions and routines which are
scarcely even regarded as open to discussion. It is pos-
sible to be sensitive and alive to achievement In the more
complex human arts and yet, at the same time, remain

xii

PREFACE

crude in the more fundamental arts. The reverse devel-
opment is also possible.

So it may happen that, in presence of the picture Dr.
Malinowski here presents to us, we become aware, not
only of a unique contribution to anthropological research,
but of suggestions bearing on civilized life and its efForts
towards social reform. The Trobriand Islanders are a
small community living in a confined space 5 they only
supply one of the patterns of savage life, though it may
well be a fairly typical pattern. When we study it we
find not merely that in this field the savage man is very
like the civilized man, with the like vices and virtues
under different forms, but we may even find that in some
respects the savage has here reached a finer degree of
civilization than the civilized man. The comparisons we
can thus make furnish suggestions even for the critical
study of our own social life.

H. E.

xni

CONTENTS

Preface by Havelock Ellis
Introduction by the Author .

PAGE

vii

XXllI

I. The Relations Between the Sexes in Tribal
Life

1. The Principles of Mother-Right

2. A Trobriand Village ....

3. Family Life ......

4. The Division of Property and Duties Accord

ing to Sex ......

IIL

IV.

The Status of Woman in Native Society

1. The Privileges and Burdens of Rank

2. Mortuary Rites and Festivities

3. Woman's Share in Magic

Prenuptial Intercourse .

1. The Sexual Life of Children

2. Age Divisions .....

The Amorous Life of Adolescence
The Bachelors' House .

The Avenues to Marriage

1. Motives for Marrying .

2. The Consent of the Wife's Family

3. Marriage Gifts

4. Infant Betrothal and Cross-Cousin Marriage

5. Matrimonial Alliances in a Chief's Family

6. Ceremonies of Infant Betrothal .

3
8

17
22

36
40

59
61

77
84
89

104

VI.

VII.

VIII.

IX.

CONTENTS

Marriage

Husband and Wife as Companions

Adultery and Sexual Jealousy

Economic Tribute from the Wife's Family

The Polygamy of Chiefs

The Domestic Aspect of Polygamy

Divorce and the Dissolution of Marriage
BY Death . . . . ...

1. Divorce ........

2. Death and the Bereaved

3. Funeral Ceremonies and the Obligations of

Mourning .......

4. The Ideology of Mourning ....

Procreation and Pregnancy in Native Be-
lief AND Custom

1. The Male and Female Organism and the

Sexual Impulse in Native Belief

2. Reincarnation and the Way to Life Through

the Spirit World

3. Ignorance of Physiological Paternity

4. Words and Deeds in Testimony

5. Fatherless Children in a Matrilineal Society .

6. The Singular Claims of Sociological Paternity

Pregnancy and Childbirth

Preparation for the First Pregnancy Rites
Ceremonial of First Pregnancy
Customs of Pregnancy and Confinement
Mother and Child

Customary Forms of Licence

1. The Erotic Element in Games

2. Games Involving Physical Contact

3. Seasons of Love and Festivity

4. Ceremonial Gatherings — Kayasa .

5. Orgiastic Festivals . . . .

PAGE
109
109
114

121
130

142

152

164
164

170
179

186

203

211
211
217
226
232

236
238
244
247
252
256

CONTENTS

XII.

6. Ulatile — ^Youth in Search of Amorous Ad-

venture .......

7. Katuyausi — A Ceremonial Escapade of Girls

8. Yausa — Orgiastic Assaults by Women .

9. Actuality of Orgiastic Licence

Love-Making and the Psychology of Erotic

Life

Erotic Attraction .....

Repulsion by Ugliness, Age, and Disease
Beauty of the Human Face and Body .
The Care of the Body
The Course of an Intrigue .
Cases of Personal Attachment
The Commercial Aspect of Love
Jealousy ......

Beauty, Colour, and Scent in Love-Making
The Conversation of Tv^^o Lovers
Erotic Approaches ....

The Act of Sex . . r . .

4.
5.

7-
8.

10.
II.
12.

XL The Magic of Love and Beauty .

1. The Importance of Beauty

2. Ceremonial Occasions of Beauty Magic

3. Beauty Magic: The Ritual of Washing

4. Beauty Magic: The Ritual of Adornment

5. The Magic of Safety and Renown at Festivi

ties ......

6. The Magic of Love

7. The Rite and the Spell in Love Magic

8. The Realities of Love Magic

9. The Magic of Oblivion

Erotic Dreams and Fantasies

1. Dreams ......

2. Sex in Folk-Lore — String Figures .

3. Sex in Folk-Lore — Facetise

4. Sex in Folk-Lore — Legend and Myth

5. The Erotic Paradise of the Trobriander

261
269

273

275

281
285
288
295

303
309
314

319
321

325
328

330
335

344

345
346
351
354

357
361

365
373
378

384
386

396
402
412
428

CONTENTS

XIII. Morals and Manners

1. Decency and Decorum .

2. The Morals of Sex

3. The Censure of Sexual Aberrations

4. Modesty in Speech and Behaviour .

5. Exogamy and the Prohibition of Incest

6. The Supreme Taboo

XIV. A Savage Myth of Incest

1. The Sources of Love

2. The Original Text of the Myth

3. Cases of Actual Incest .

Magic

438
440
452
469

477
494
514

537

540

551

565

Index

573

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

Two Pretty Girls, One Disfigured by Mourning

Frontisfiece

1. The Central Place of Omarakana

2. The Chief and His Sons

3. Two Hereditary Enemies

4. The Chief's Favourite Wife and Her Family

5. Ceremonial Cooking of Taro

6. Women with Carrying Pads

7. A Family on the Road

8. Native Interior

9. A Stage in Skirt Making

10. Drying Skirt Fibre

1 1 . The Mortuary Dance

12. Distribution of Skirts in Mortuary Ritual

13. Decorated Women

14. Men in Full Festive Attire

15. Children Showing a Game to the Ethnog-

rapher

16. The Children's Republic

17. Small Boys Playing at Sagali

18. A Group of Girls

19. Boys in the Yam Garden

20. A Decorated Bachelors' House

21. Girl IN Front OF A 5c7XC7M^T?7L^

22. Kalogusa, the Chief's Son

23. Marriage Gift in Preparation

24. The Marriage Gift Displayed

25. MiTAKATA and OrAYSE

26. A Happy Family

27. The Marriage Tribute in the Garden

28. Carrying the Harvest Gift

29. The Urigubu in the Village

30. A Polygamous Family

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

31. A Chief's Wife and Her Annual Dowry

32. Decorated Corpse

33. Body After First Exhumation

34. Widow in Full Mourning

35. Widow in Half Mourning

36. A Decorated Jawbone

37. TOMWAYA LaKWABULO THE SeER

38. Albino

39. An Unmarried Mother

40. Two Brothers

41. Father and Son

42. The Pregnancy Cloak

43. First Charming of the Pregnancy Robes

44. Cutting the White Lily Leaves

45. The Way into the Water

46. The Ritual Bathing

47. Second Charming of the Pregnancy Cloaks

48. Guarded from Contact with Earth

49. Return to the Father's House

50. Vigil on the Platform

51. A Mother and Her First-born

52. Children in a Round Game

53. A Figure Game

54. Rats

55. The Fishing of Kuboya

56. Typical Scenery of Hide and Seek

57. A Harvest Scene

58. A Ceremonial Dancing Demonstration

59. The U l ATI le of Kwaybwaga

60. Ulatilb on the Lagoon

61. Girls Decorated for Katuyausi or Harvest

Visit

62. Katuyausi Party

63. The Beach of the Lagoon

64. Bagido'u

65. Kaydebu Dance

66. A Melanesian Beauty

67. A Type Not Admired by the Natives

68. Ethnographer with a Man in a Wig

LIST OF ILLUSTRATION^

69. The Leaf and the Dress

70. Lousing

71. Ceremonial Distribution of Food

72. After the Distribution

73. Rehearsal of a Kasawaga Dance

74. The Crowd Assembled Outside the Village

for Beauty Magic

75. The Magic of Mother of Pearl

76. Magical Face Painting

77. The Ritual Placing of the Vana

78. The Last Touch to the Dancers' Toilet

79. Ready for the Final Dance

80. Women in the Water Collecting Shells .

81. Head Pool of the Tidal Creek of Kwabulo

82. The Inuvayla'u Dance

83. UsiKELA Bananas in Kaulagu

84. Accumulation of Food for a Feast

85. Crowd Collected on a Beach to Admire a

Large Catch

86. A Small Group Eating Taro

87. Typical Lagoon Village

88. Tokeda — the Belt of Jungle Adjoining a

Garden

89. Ancestral Emergence Spot in a Small Vil-

lage ON THE Island of Vakuta

90. Mother and Child

91. Father and Child

The Trobriand Islands

Fig.

1. Plan of Village of Omarakana

2. Plan of a Dwelling-House

3. Cats' -Cradle

4. The Beach of Kumilabwaga

INTRODUCTION

I HAVE chosen for this book the plainest, that is the
most truthful title, partly to contribute towards the re-
habilitation of the indispensable and often misused term
sexual, partly to announce directly what the reader has
to expect in the most outspoken paragraphs. Sex is not
a mere physiological transaction to the primitive South
Sea Islander any more than it is to us 3 it implies love
and love-making j it becomes the nucleus of such vener-
able institutions as marriage and the family j it pervades
art and it produces its spells and its magic. It dominates
in fact almost every aspect of culture. SeXy in its widest
meaning — and it is thus that I have used it in the title
of this book — is rather a sociological and cultural force
than a mere bodily relation of two individuals. But the
scientific treatment of this subject obviously involves also
a keen interest in the biological nucleus. The anthro-
pologist must therefore give a description of the direct
approaches between two lovers, as we find them in
Oceania, shaped by their traditions, obeying their laws,
following the customs of their tribe.

In Anthropology the essential facts of life must be
stated simply and fully, though in scientific language, and
such a plain statement cannot really offend the most deli-
cately minded nor the most prejudiced reader j nor can it
be of any use to the seeker after pornography 3 least of all

xxiii

INTRODUCTION

can it entice the unripe interest of the young. For pruri-
ency consists in oblique day-dreaming and not in simple
and direct statement. The reader will find that the na-
tives treat sex in the long run not only as a source of
pleasure, but, indeed, as a thing serious and even sacred.
Nor do their customs and ideas eliminate from sex its
power to transform crude material fact into wonderful
spiritual experience, to throw the romantic glamour of
love over the technicalities of love-making. The institu-
tions of the Trobriand community allow mere brutal pas-
sion to ripen into life-long love, to be shot through with
personal affinities, to be strengthened by the manifold
bonds and attachments created through the advent of
children, by the mutual anxieties and hopes, by the com-
mon aims and interests of family life.

It is perhaps in the blending of the directly sensual
with the romantic and in the wide and weighty socio-
logical consequences of what to start with is the most per-
sonal event — it is in this richness and multiplicity of love
that lies its philosophic mystery, its charm for the poet
and its interest for the anthropologist. This many-sided-
ness of love exists among the Trobrianders as well as with
us, and it brings nearer to us even that which to most
might at first appear crude and uncontrolled.

To ignore this latter aspect, however, to shirk treating
the material foundations of love would in a scientific work
mean completely to stultify all results. It would be to
commit the unpardonable sin of evading the real issue.
Anyone who does not wish to be concerned with sex need
not acquire or read this book 5 and those who approach
the subject in a non-scientific spirit may be warned from

xxiv

INTRODUCTION

the outset that they will find nothing suggestive or allur-
ing in the following chapters.

I want to make it quite clear that the comparisons be-
tween native and European conditions scattered here and
there, especially in the later chapters, are not meant to
serve as a sociological parallel — for that they are far too
slight. Still less are the native-European parallels of the
present book meant to provide a homily on our own fail-
ings or a pasan on our virtues. They are given simply
because, in order to explain strange facts, it is necessary to
hark back to familiar ones. The Anthropologist in his
observations has to understand the native through his own
psychology, and he must form the picture of a foreign
culture from the elements of his own and of others prac-
tically and theoretically known to him. The whole diffi-
culty and art of field-work consists of starting from those
elements which are familiar in the foreign culture and
gradually working the strange and diverse into a compre-
hensible scheme. In this the learning of a foreign cul-
ture is like the learning of a foreign tongue: at first mere
assimilation and crude translation, at the end a complete
detachment from the original medium and a mastery of
the new one. And since an adequate ethnographic descrip-
tion must reproduce in miniature the gradual, lengthy,
and painful processes of field-work, the references to the
familiar, the parallels between Europe and the Trobriands
have to serve as starting points.

After all, to reach the reader I have to rely upon his
personal experiences which are built up in our own society.
Exactly as I have to write in English, and translate na-
tive terms or texts into English, so also I have, in order

XXV

INTRODUCTION

to make them real and comprehensible, to translate Mela-
nesian conditions into our own. Whatever error there is
in either procedure is inevitable. An Anthropologist may
be well aware of traduttore tradltorey but he cannot help
it — he cannot banish his few patient readers for a couple
of years to a South Sea atoll, and make them live the life
for themselves 3 he has, alas, to write books about his
savages and lecture on them!

One more point about the method of presentation.
Every conscientious scientific observer should state not
only what he knows and how he has come to know it, but
also indicate those gaps in his knowledge of which he is
aware, the failures and omissions in his fieJd-work. I
have given already (^Argonauts of the Western Pad fie ^
ch. i) a full account of my credentials: length of time
spent on the islands, linguistic qualifications, methods of
collecting documents and statements. I shall not repeat
this all here, and the few necessary additional remarks
on the difficult study of native intimate life, the reader
will find in the text (ch. ix, 95 ch. x, intro.5 chs. xii and
xiii, intros.)

The competent and experienced ethnographer and
anthropologist — and only such a one is interested in the
margin of accuracy, in the methodology of evidence and
in the gaps in information — will easily see from the data
presented throughout this book, where the documentation
is thin and where it is full. When I make a simple state-
ment without illustrating it from personal observation or
adducing facts, this means that I am mainly relying on
what I was told by my native informants. This is, of
course, the least reliable part of my material.

xxvi

INTRODUCTION

I am especially aware that my knowledge of obstetrical
facts and of the women's attitude at pregnancy and child-
birth is rather meagre. Again the father's behaviour at
the time of childbirth and male psychology with regard
to it, were not studied as fully as they should have been.
Many minor points throughout the book are treated in a
manner which will make clear to the specialist, not only
where the information is incomplete, but also what fur-
ther inquiry would be needed to fill out the gaps. On
most points of fundamental importance, I am convinced
that I have come down to bedrock.

One gap, regrettable but hardly to be remedied, is the
small number of illustrations bearing directly on erotic
life. Since this, however, takes place in deep shadow,
literally as well as figuratively, photographs could only
be faked, or at best, posed — and faked or posed passion
(or sentiment) is worthless.

The many obligations incurred in the course of my
field-work have been acknowledged elsewhere {Argonauts
of the Western Pacific) j but I should like here to men-
tion a very special indebtedness to my friend, Billy
Hancock, trader and pearl-buyer in the Trobriands, whose
mysterious death occurred while I was writing this book.
He was ill, and awaiting the South-bound boat at Samarai,
the European settlement in the east of New Guinea. One
evening he disappeared, never to be seen or heard of
again. He was not only an excellent informant and help-
mate, but a real friend, whose company and assistance
added a great deal of material comfort and moral support
in a somewhat exacting and tedious existence.

In writing this book I was greatly stimulated by the

xxvii

INTRODUCTION

interest taken in it by Mr. Havelock Ellis, whose work
and whose example as a pioneer in honest thought and
outspoken research I have always admired and revered.
His preface materially enhances the value of this book.

The group of my friends, pupils, and colleagues who
have been associated with Anthropological Research Work
and Teaching at the London School of Economics for the
last few years, have helped me greatly to clarify my ideas
and to present my material, more especially on the sub-
ject of family life, kinship organization, and marriage
law. The names of Mrs. Robert Aitken (Miss Barbara
Freire-Marecco), of Dr. R. W. Firth (now in the Solo-
mons), of Mr. E. E. Evans-Pritchard (now among the
Azande), of Miss Camilla Wedgwood (now in Aus-
tralia), of Dr. Gordon Brown (now in Tanganyika), of
Dr. Hortense Powdermaker (now on the way to Papua),
of Mr. I. Schapera (late of South Africa), of Mr.
T. J. A. Yates (late of Egypt), of Miss Audrey Rich-
ards, will in my mind be always gratefully remembered
in association with the drafting of the more difficult socio-
logical chapters of this book.

My greatest debt in this book, as in most I have written,
is to my wife. Her counsel and practical co-operation
have made the writing of the Argonauts of the Western
Pacific and of this an agreeable task instead of a drudgery.
If there is any value and interest in these books for me
personally, it comes from her share in the common work.

B. M.

London.

January^ 1929.

xxviii

CHAPTER I

THE RELATIONS BETWEEN THE SEXES IN
TRIBAL LIFE

Man and woman in the Trobriand Islands — ^their rela-
tions in love, in marriage, and in tribal life — ^this will
be the subject of the present study.

The most dramatic and intense stage in the intercourse
between man and woman, that in which they love, mate,
and produce children, must occupy the dominant place in
any consideration of the sexual problem. To the aver-
age normal person, in whatever type of society we find
him, attraction by the other sex and the passionate and
sentimental episodes which follow are the most significant
events in his existence, those most deeply associated with
his intimate happiness and with the zest and meaning of
life. To the sociologist, therefore, who studies a par-
ticular type of society, those of its customs, ideas, and
institutions which centre round the erotic life of the in-
dividual should be of primary importance. For if he
wants to be in tune with his subject and to place it in a
natural, correct perspective, the sociologist must, in his
research, follow the trend of personal values and in-
terests. That which means supreme happiness to the
individual must be made a fundamental factor in the
scientific treatment of human society.

THE SEXES IN TRIBAL LIFE

But the erotic phase, although the most important, is
only one among many in which the sexes meet and enter
into relations with each other. It cannot be studied out-
side its proper context, without, that is, being linked up
with the legal status of man and woman 3 with their do-
mestic relations 5 and with the distribution of their eco-
nomic functions. Courtship, love, and mating in a given
society are influenced in every detail by the way in which
the sexes face one another in public and in private, by
their position in tribal law and custom, by the manner
in which they participate in games, and amusements, by
the share each takes in ordinary daily toil.

The story of a people's love-making necessarily has
to begin with an account of youthful and infantile asso-
ciations, and it leads inevitably forward to the later stage
of permanent union and marriage. Nor can the narra-
tive break oflF at this point, since science cannot claim the
privilege of fiction. The way in which men and women
arrange their common life and that of their children
reacts upon their love-making, and the one stage cannot
be properly understood without a knowledge of the other.

This book deals with sexual relations among the na-
tives of the Trobriand Islands, a coral archipelago lying
to the north-east of New Guinea. These natives belong
to the Papuo-Melanesian race, and in their physical ap-
pearance, mental equipment, and social organization com-
bine a majority of Oceanic characteristics with certain
features of the more backward Papuan population from
the mainland of New Guinea.^

1 For a full general account of the Northern Massim, of whom the

PRINCIPLES OF MOTHER-RIGHT

THE PRINCIPLES OF MOTHER-RIGHT

We find in the Trobriands a matrilineal society, in
which descent, kinship, and every social relationship are
legally reckoned through the mother only, and in which
women have a considerable share in tribal life, even to
the taking of a leading part in economic, ceremonial, and
magical activities — a fact which very deeply influences
all the customs of erotic life as well as the institution of
marriage. It will be well, therefore, first to consider
the sexual relation in its widest aspect, beginning with
some account of those features of custom and tribal law
which underlie the institution of mother-right, and the
various views and conceptions which throw light upon it j
after this, a short sketch of each of the chief domains of
tribal life — domestic, economic, legal, ceremonial, and
magical — ^will combine to show the respective spheres of
male and female activity among these natives.

The idea that it is solely and exclusively the mother
who builds up the child's body, the man in no way con-
tributing to its formation, is the most important factor
in the legal system of the Trobrianders. Their views
on the process of procreation, coupled with certain myth-
ological and animistic beliefs, affirm, without doubt or re-

Trobrianders form a section, cf. the classical treatise of Professor C. G.
Seligman, Melanesians of British Neiv Guinea, Cambridge, 1910, which
also shows the relation of the Trobrianders to the other races and cultures
on and around New Guinea. A short account of Trobriand culture will
also be found in my Argonauts of the Western Pacific (E. P. Dutton and
Co., 1923).

THE SEXES IN TRIBAL LIFE

serve, that the child is of the same substance as its mother,
and that between the father and the child there is no bond
of physical union whatsoever (see ch. vii).

That the mother contributes everything to the new
being to be born of her is taken for granted by the natives,
and forcibly expressed by them. "The mother feeds the
infant in her body. Then, when it comes out, she feeds
it with her milk." "The mother makes the child out of
her blood." "Brothers and sisters are of the same flesh,
because they come of the same mother." These and
similar expressions describe their attitude towards this,
their fundamental principle of kinship.

This attitude is also to be found embodied, in an even
more telling manner, in the rules governing descent, in-
heritance, succession in rank, chieftainship, hereditary
offices, and magic — in every regulation, in fact, concerning
transmission by kinship. Social position is handed on in
the mother-line from a man to his sister's children, and
this exclusively matrilineal conception of kinship is of
paramount importance in the restrictions and regulations
of marriage, and in the taboos on sexual intercourse. The
working of these ideas of kinship can be observed, break-
ing out with a dramatic intensity, at death. For the social
rules underlying burial, lamentation, and mourning, to-
gether with certain very elaborate ceremonies of food dis-
tribution, are based on the principle that people joined
by the tie of maternal kinship form a closely knit group,
bound by an identity of feelings, of interests, and of flesh.
And from this group, even those united to it by marriage
and by the father-to-child relation are sharply excluded,

PRINCIPLES OF MOTHER-RIGHT

as having no natural share in the bereavement (see ch. vi,
sees. 2-4).

These natives have a well-established institution of
marriage, and yet are quite ignorant of the man's share
in the begetting of children. At the same time, the term
"father" has, for the Trobriander, a clear, though ex-
clusively social, definition: it signifies the man married
to the mother, who lives in the same house with her, and
forms part of the household. The father, in all discus-
sions about relationship, was pointedly described to me as
tomakavay a "stranger," or, even more correctly, an "out-
sider." This expression would also frequently be used by
natives in conversation, when they were arguing some
point of inheritance or trying to justify some line of be-
haviour, or again when the position of the father was to
be belittled in some quarrel.

It will be clear to the reader, therefore, that the term
"father," as I use it here, must be taken, not as having
the various legal, moral, and biological implications that
it holds for us, but in a sense entirely specific to the soci-
ety with which we are dealing. It might seem better,
in order to avoid any chance of such misconception, not
to have used our word "father" at all, but rather the
native one tamUy and to have spoken of the ^Hama relation-
ship" instead of "fatherhood" j but, in practice, this would
have proved too unwieldy. The reader, therefore, when
he meets the word "father" in these pages, should never
forget that it must be defined, not as in the English dic-
tionary, but in accordance with the facts of native life.
I may add that this rule applies to all terms which carry

THE SEXES IN TRIBAL LIFE

special sociological implication, that is to all terms of
relationship, and such words as "marriage," "divorce,"
"betrothal," "love," "courtship," and the like.

What does the word tama (father) express to the
native? "Husband of my mother" would be the answer
first given by an intelligent informant. He would go on
to say that his tama is the man in whose loving and pro-
tecting company he has grown up. For, since marriage
is patrilocal in the Trobriands, since the woman, that is
to say, moves to her husband's village community and
lives in his house, the father is a close companion to his
children 5 he takes an active part in the cares which are
lavished upon them, invariably feels and shows a deep
affection for them, and later has a share in their education.
The word tama (father) condenses, therefore, in its emo-
tional meaning, a host of experiences of early childhood,
and expresses the typical sentiment existing between a
boy or girl and a mature affectionate man of the same
household 3 while socially it denotes the male person who
stands in an intimate relation to the mother, and who is
master of the household.

So far tama does not differ essentially from "father"
in our sense. But as soon as the child begins to grow up
and take an interest in things outside the affairs of the
household and its own immediate needs, certain complica-
tions arise, and change the meaning of tama for him. He
learns that he is not of the same clan as his tama^ that his
totemic appellation is different, and that it is identical
with that of his mother. At the same time he learns that

PRINCIPLES OF MOTHER-RIGHT

all sorts of duties, restrictions, and concerns for personal
pride unite him to his mother and separate him from his
father. Another man appears on the horizon, and is
called by the child kadagu ("my mother's brother").
This man may live in the same locality, but he is just as
likely to reside in another village. The child also learns
that the place where his kada (mother's brother) resides
is also his, the child's, "own village" 5 that there he has
his property and his other rights of citizenship j that there
his future career awaits himj that there his natural allies
and associates are to be found. He may even be taunted
in the village of his birth with being an "outsider" {toma-
kava)y while in the village he has to call "his own," in
which his mother's brother lives, his father is a stranger
and he a natural citizen. He also sees, as he grows up,
that the mother's brother assumes a gradually increasing
authority over him, requiring his services, helping him in
some things, granting or withholding his permission to
carry out certain actions j while the father's authority and
counsel become less and less important.

Thus the life of a Trobriander runs under a two-fold
influence — a duality which must not be imagined as a
mere surface play of custom. It enters deeply into the
existence of every individual, it produces strange compli-
cations of usage, it creates frequent tensions and diffi-
culties, and not seldom gives rise to violent breaks in the
continuity of tribal life. For this dual influence of
paternal love and the matrilineal principle, which pene-
trates so far into the framework of institutions and into

THE SEXES IN TRIBAL LIFE

the social ideas and sentiments of the native, is not, as a
matter of fact, quite well adjusted in its working/

It has been necessary to emphasize the relationship be-
tween a Trobriander and his father, his mother, and his
mother's brother, for this is the nucleus of the complex
system of mother-right or matriliny, and this system gov-
erns the whole social life of these natives. The question
is, moreover, specially related to the main theme of this
book: love-making, marriage, and kinship are three aspects
of the same subject j they are the three facets which it
presents in turn to sociological analysis.

A TROBRIAND VILLAGE

We have so far given the sociological definition of
fatherhood, of the mother's brother's relation, and of
the nature of the bond between mother and child j a bond
founded on the biological facts of gestation and the ex-
tremely close psychological attachment which results from
these. The best way to make this abstract statement clear
will be to display the inter-working of the three rela-
tionships in an actual community in the Trobriands.
Thus we can make our explanations concrete and get
into touch with actual life instead of moving among ab-
stractions j and, incidentally, too, we can introduce some
personalities who will appear in the later parts of our
narrative.

The village of Omarakana is, in a sense, the capital

^ Cf. my Crime and Custom in Salvage Society, Harcourt, Brace, 1926.

A TROBRIAND VILLAGE

of Kiriwina, the main district of these islands. It is the
residence of the principal chief, whose name, prestige,
and renown are carried far and wide over the Archipela-
goes, though his power does not reach beyond the prov-
ince of Kiriwina/ The village lies on a fertile, level
plain in the northern part of the large, flat coral island
of Boyowa (see map). As we walk towards it, from the
lagoon anchorages on the western shore, the level road
leads across monotonous stretches covered with low scrub,
here and there broken by a tabooed grove, or by a large
garden, holding vines trained on long poles and looking,
in its developed form, like an exuberant hop-yard. We
pass several villages on our way 5 the soil becomes more
fertile and the settlement denser as we approach the long
ridge of raised coral outcrop which runs along the eastern
shore and shuts oflF the open sea from the inland plains
of the island.

A large clump of trees appears at a distance — ^these
are the fruit-trees, the palms and the piece of uncut virgin
jungle which together surround the village of Omara-
kana. We pass the grove and find ourselves between two
rows of houses, built in concentric rings round a large
open space (see fig. i and plate i). Between the outer
ring and the inner one a circular street runs round the
whole of the village, and in it, as we pass, we see groups
of people sitting in front of their huts (see pi. 4). The
outer ring consists of dwelling-houses, the inner of store-

^ For further references to this eminent personage and for an account
of chieftainship, see C. G. Seligman, op. cit., chapters xlix and li ; also
my Argonauts of the Western Pacific, passim, and "Baloma, Spirits of
the Dead." Journ. R, Anthrop. Inst.^ 1916.

THE SEXES IN TRIBAL LIFE

huts in which the taytu^ a variety of yam, which forms
the staple food of the natives, is kept from one harvest
to the next. We are struck at once by the better finish,
the greater constructive elaboration, and the superior em-
bellishment and decoration which distinguish the yam-
houses from the dwellings (see pi. 31). As we stand on
the wide central space we can admire the circular row of
storehouses in front of us, for both these and the dwell-
ings always face the centre. In Omarakana a big yam-
house belonging to the chief stands in the middle of this
space. Somewhat nearer the ring, but still well in the
centre stands another large building, the chief's living
hut (see pis. i and 2).

This singularly symmetrical arrangement of the village
is of importance, for it represents a definite sociological
scheme. The inner place is the scene of the public and
festive life. A part of it is the old-time burial ground
of the villagers, and at one end is the dancing ground,
the scene of all ceremonial and festive celebrations. The
houses which surround it, the inner ring of store-huts that
is, share its quasi-sacred character, a number of taboos
being placed upon them. The street between the two
rows is the theatre of domestic life and everyday occur-
rence (see pis. 4 and 39). Without over-labouring the
point, the central place might be called the male portion
of the village and the street that of the women.

Let us now make preliminary acquaintance with some
of the more important inhabitants of Omarakana, be-
ginning with the present chief, To'uluwa (see pis. 2 and
41). Not only are he and his family the most prominent

A TROBRIAND VILLAGE

members of the community^ but they occupy more than
half of the village. As we shall see (ch. v, sec. 4), the
chiefs in the Trobriands have the privilege of polygamy.
To'uluwa, who lives in the large house in the middle of
the village, has a number of wives who occupy a whole
row of huts (A — B on the plan, fig. i). Also his maternal
kinsmen, who belong to his family and sub-clan called
Tabalu, have a separate space in the village for them-
selves (A — C). The third section (B — C) is inhabited
by commoners who are not related to the chief either as
kinsmen or as children.

The community is thus divided into three parts. The
first consists of the chief and his maternal kinsmen, the
Tabalu, all of whom claim the village as their own, and
consider themselves masters of its soil with all attendant
privileges. The second consists of the commoners, who
are themselves divided into two groups: those claiming
the rights of citizenship on mythological grounds (these
rights are distinctly inferior to those of the chief's sub-
clan, and the claimants remain in the village only as the
chief's vassals or servants) 3 and strangers in the heredi-
tary service of the chief, who live in the village by that
right and title. The third part consists of the chief's
wives and their offspring.

These wives, by reason of patrilocal marriage, have
to settle in their husband's village, and with them, of
course, remain their younger children. But the grown-up
sons are allowed to stay in the village only through the
personal influence of their father. This influence over-
rules the tribal law that every man ought to live in his

THE SEXES IN TRIBAL LIFE

own — that is his mother's — ^village. The chief is always
much more attached to his children than to his maternal
kinsmen. He prefers their company j like every typical
Trobriand father, he takes, sentimentally at least, their
side in any dispute j and he invariably tries to grant them
as many privileges and benefits as possible. This state of
affairs is naturally not altogether appreciated by the
chief's legal successors, his maternal kinsmen, the children
of his sister 5 and frequently considerable tension and
sharp friction arise between the two sections in conse-
quence.

Such a state of tension revealed itself recently in an
acute upheaval, which shook the quiet tribal life of
Omarakana and for years undermined its internal har-
mony.^ There was a feud of long standing between
Namwana Guya'u, the chief's favourite son, and Mitakata,
his nephew and third in succession to the rule (see pi. 3).
Namwana Guya'u was the most influential man in the
village, after the chief, his father: To'uluwa allowed him
to wield a great deal of power, and gave him more than
his share of wealth and privilege.

One day, about six months after my arrival in Omara-
kana, the quarrel came acutely to a head. Namwana
Guya'u, the chief's son, accused his enemy, Mitakata, the
nephew and one of the heirs, of committing adultery
with his wife, brought him before the White Resident
Magistrate, and thereby caused him to be imprisoned for

1 The following account has been already published (in Crime and
Custom, pp. loi sq.). Since it is an almost exact reproduction of the
original entry in my field-notes, I prefer to give it here once more in the
same form, with a few verbal alterations only.

A TROBRIAND VILLAGE

a month or so. The news of this imprisonment reached
the village from the Government compound, a few miles
distant, at sunset, and created a panic. The chief shut
himself up in his personal hut, full of evil forebodings
for his favourite, who had thus rashly outraged tribal
law and feeling. The kinsmen of the imprisoned heir
to chieftainship were boiling with suppressed anger and
indignation. As night fell, the subdued villagers settled
down to a silent supper, each family over its solitary
meal. There was nobody on the central place. Nam-
wana Guya'u was not to be seen, the chief To'uluwa re-
mained secluded in his hut, most of his wives and their
children staying indoors also. Suddenly a loud voice
rang out across the silent village. Bagido'u, the heir
apparent and eldest brother of the imprisoned man, stand-
ing before his hut, cried out, addressing the offender of
his family:

"Namwana Guya'u, you are a cause of trouble. We,
the Tabalu of Omarakana, allowed you to stay here, to
live among us. You had plenty of food in Omarakana.
You ate of our food. You partook of the pigs brought
to us as a tribute, and of the flesh. You sailed in our
canoe. You built a hut on our soil. Now you have done
us harm. You have told lies. Mitakata is in prison. We
do not want you to stay here. This is our village! You
are a stranger here. Go away! We drive you away!
We drive you out of Omarakana."

These words were uttered in a loud, piercing voice,
which trembled with strong emotion: each short sentence
was spoken after a pause j each, like an individual missile,

THE SEXES IN TRIBAL LIFE

was hurled across the empty space to the hut where
Namwana Guya'u sat brooding. Next, the younger sister
of Mitakata rose and spoke, and then a young man, one
of their maternal nephews. Their words were in each
case almost the same as Bagido'u's, the burden being the
formula of dismissal or driving away, the yoha. These
speeches were received in deep silence. Nothing stirred
in the village. But, before the night was over, Namwana
Guya'u had left Omarakana for ever. He had gone over
and settled a few miles away, in Osapola, his "own" vil-
lage, whence his mother came. For weeks she and his
sister wailed for him with loud lamentations as for the
dead. The chief remained for three days in his hut, and
when he came out he looked aged and broken by grief.
All his personal interest and affection were on the side
of his favourite son, yet he could do nothing to help him.
His kinsmen had acted strictly within their rights, and,
according to tribal law, he could not possibly dissociate
himself from them. No power could change the decree
of exile. Once the words "Go away" — huhula^ "we drive
thee away" — kayabaimy had been pronounced, the man
had to go. These words, very rarely uttered in earnest,
have a binding force and an almost ritual power when
pronounced by citizens against a resident outsider. A
man who would try to brave the dreadful insult involved
in them and remain in spite of them, would be dis-
honoured for ever. In fact, anything but immediate
compliance with a ritual request is unthinkable for a Tro-
briand Islander.

The chief's resentment against his kinsmen was deep

A TROBRIAND VILLAGE

and lasting. At first he would not even speak to them.'
For a year or so, not one of them dared to ask to be taken
on overseas expeditions by him, although they were fully
entitled to this privilege. Two years later, in 191 7, when
I returned to the Trobriands, Namwana Guya'u was still
resident in the other village and keeping aloof from his
father's kinsmen, though he frequently visited Omarakana
in order to be in attendance on his father, especially when
To'uluwa went abroad. His mother had died within a
year after his expulsion. As the natives described it:
"She wailed and wailed, refused to eat, and died." The
relations between the two main enemies were completely
broken, and Mitakata, the young chieftain who had been
imprisoned, had repudiated his wife, who belonged to the
same sub-clan as Namwana Guya'u. There was a deep
rift in the whole social life of Kiriwina.

This incident was one of the most dramatic which I
have ever witnessed in the Trobriands. I have described
it at length, as it contains a striking illustration of the
nature of mother-right, of the power of tribal law, and
of the passions which work against and in spite of these.
It shows also the deep, personal attachment which a father
feels for his children, the tendency which he has to use
all his personal influence to give them a strong position
in the village, the opposition which this always evokes
among his maternal kinsmen, and the tension and rifts
thus brought about. Under normal conditions, in a
smaller community where the contending powers are
humbler and less important, such tension would merely
mean that, after the father's death, the children would

THE SEXES IN TRIBAL LIFE

have to return to his maternal kinsmen practically all the:
material benefits they had received from him during his
lifetime. In any case, a good deal of discontent and
friction and many roundabout methods of settlement are
involved in this dual play of paternal affection and matri-
lineal authority: the chief's son and his maternal nephew
can be described as predestined enemies.

This theme will recur in the progress of the following
narrative. In discussing consent to marriage, we shall
see the importance of paternal authority and the functions
of the matrilineal kinsmen. The custom of cross-cousin
marriage is a traditional reconciliation of the two oppos-
ing principles. The sexual taboos and prohibitions of
incest also cannot be understood without a clear grasp of
the principles discussed in this section.

So far we have met To'uluwa, his favourite wife
Kadamwasila, whose death followed on the village
tragedy, their son Namwana Guya'u, and his enemy
Mitakata, son of the chief's sister, and these we shall
meet again, for they were among my best informants.
We shall also become acquainted with the other sons of
the chief, and of his favourite wife, and with some of his
maternal kinsmen and kinswomen. We shall follow sev-
eral of them in their love affairs, and in their marriage
arrangements j we shall have to pry into their domestic
scandals, and to take an indiscreet interest in their intimate
life. For all of them were, during a long period, under
ethnographic observation, and I obtained much of my
material through their confidences, and especially from
their mutual scandal-mongering.

FAMILY LIFE

Many examples will also be given from other com-
munities, and we shall make frequent visits to the lagoon
villages of the western shore, to places on the south of
the island, and to some of the neighbouring smaller islands
of the Archipelago. In all these other communities more
uniform and democratic conditions prevail, and this makes
some difference in the character of their sexual life.

FAMILY LIFE

In entering the village we had to pass across the street
between the two concentric rows of houses/ This is the
normal setting of the everyday life of the community, and
thither we must return in order to make a closer survey
of the groups of people sitting in front of their dwellings
(see pi. 4). As a rule we find that each group consists
of one family only — ^man, wife, and children — taking
their leisure, or engaged in some domestic activity which
varies with the time of day. On a fine morning we would
see them hastily eating a scanty breakfast, and then the
man and woman preparing the implements for the day's
work, with the help of the bigger children, while the
baby is laid out of the way on a mat. Afterwards, during
the cool hours of the forenoon, each family would prob-
ably set off to their work, leaving the village almost
deserted. The man, in company with others, may be
fishing or hunting or building a canoe or looking for

1 A good glimpse of the "street," can be obtained on pi. 12, where two
dwelling huts, right and left, can be seen behind the two yam houses in
the middle.

THE SEXES IN TRIBAL LIFE

timber. The woman may have gone collecting shell-fish
or wild fruits. Or else both may be working in the
gardens, or paying a visit. The man often does harder
work than the woman, but when they return in the hot
hours of the afternoon he will rest, while the woman
busies herself with household aflFairs. Towards evening,
when the descending sun casts longer, cooler shadows, the
social life of the village begins. At this time we would
see our family group in front of their hut, the wife
preparing food, the children playing, the husband, per-
haps, seated amusing the smallest baby. This is the time
when neighbours call on one another, and conversation
may be exchanged from group to group.

The frank and friendly tone of intercourse, the obvious
feeling of equality, the father's domestic helpfulness,
especially with the children, would at once strike any
observant visitor. The wife joins freely in the jokes
and conversation 5 she does her work independently, not
with the air of a slave or a servant, but as one who man-
ages her own department. She will order the husband
about if she needs his help. Close observation, day after
day, confirms this first impression. The typical Trobriand
household is founded on the principles of equality and
independence of function: the man is considered to be
the master, for he is in his own village and the house
belongs to him, but the woman has, in other respects, a
considerable influence 5 she and her family have a great
deal to do with the food supply of the household^ she is
the owner of separate possessions in the house 5 and she
is — ^next to her brother — ^the legal head of her family.

FAMILY LIFE

The division of functions within the household is, in
certain matters, quite definite. The woman has to cook
the food, which is simple, and does not require much
preparation. The main meal is taken at sunset, and con-
sists of yams, taro, or other tubers, roasted in the open
fire — or, less frequently, boiled in a small pot, or baked
in the ground — ^with the occasional addition of fish or
meat. Next morning the remains are eaten cold, and
sometimes, though not regularly, fruit, shell-fish, or some
other light snack may be taken at mid-day.

In some circumstances, men can and do prepare and
cook the food: on journeys, oversea voyages, fishing or
hunting expeditions, when they are without their women
folk. Also, on certain occasions, when taro or sago
dumplings are cooked in the large clay pots, men are
required by tradition to assist their wives (pi. 5). But
within the village and in normal daily life the man never
cooks. It would be considered shameful for him to do so.
"You are a he-cook {tokakabwasi yoku) would be said
tauntingly. The fear of deserving such an epithet, of
being laughed at or shamed {kakayuwa)^ is extreme. It
arises from the characteristic dread and shame, found
among savages, of not doing the proper thing, or, worse
still, of doing something which is intrinsically the attribute
of another sex or social class (see ch. xiii, sees. 1-4).

There are a number of occupations strictly assigned by
tribal custom to one sex only. The manner of carrying
loads is a very noteworthy example. Women have to
carry the special feminine receptacle, the bell-shaped
basket, or any other kind of load upon their heads 5 men

THE SEXES IN TRIBAL LIFE

must carry only on the shoulder (pis. 6, 7, and 28). It
would be with a real shudder, and a profound feeling of
shame, that an individual would regard carrying anything
in the manner proper to the opposite sex and nothing
would induce a man to put any load on his head, even
in fun.

An exclusively feminine department is the water
supply. The woman has the water bottles of the house-
hold in her charge. These are made out of the woody
shell of a mature coconut, with a stopper of twisted palm-
leaf. In the morning or near sunset she goes, sometimes
a full half-mile, to fill them at the water-hole: here the
women forgather, resting and chatting, while one after
another fills her water-vessels, cleans them, arranges
them in baskets or on large wooden platters, and, just
before leaving, gives the cluster a final sprinkling of water
to cover it with a suggestive gloss of freshness. The
water-hole is the woman's club and centre of gossip, and
as such is important, for there is a distinct woman's public
opinion and point of view in a Trobriand village, and they
have their secrets from the male, just as the male has
from the female.

We have already seen that the husband fully shares
in the care of the children. He will fondle and carry
a baby, clean and wash it, and give it the mashed vege-
table food which it receives in addition to the mother's
milk almost from birth. In fact, nursing the baby in the
arms or holding it on the knees, which is described by the
native word kofo^y is the special role and duty of the
father {tamo). It is said of the children of unmarried

FAMILY LIFE

women who, according to the native expression, are "with-
out a tama*^ (that is, it must be remembered, without a
husband to their mother), that they are "unfortunate" or
"bad" because "there is no one to nurse and hug them
{gala lay tola bikofoH)?^ Again, if anyone inquires why
children should have duties towards their father, who is
a "stranger" to them, the answer is invariably: "because of
the nursing {fela kofo^t)^'^ "because his hands have been
soiled with the child's excrement and urine" (cf. ch. vii).

The father performs his duties with genuine natural
fondness : he will carry an infant about for hours, looking
at it with eyes full of such love and pride as are seldom
seen in those of a European father. Any praise of the
baby goes directly to his heart, and he will never tire of
talking about and exhibiting the virtues and achievements
of his wife's offspring. Indeed, watching a native family
at home or meeting them on the road, one receives a
strong impression of close union and intimacy between its
members (see pis. 7, 26). Nor, as we have seen, does this
mutual affection abate in later years. Thus, in the in-
timacy of domestic life, we discover another aspect of the
interesting and complicated struggle between social and
emotional paternity, on the one hand, and the explicitly
acknowledged legal mother-right on the other.

It will be noticed that we have not yet penetrated into
the interior of a house, for in fine weather the scene of
family life is always laid in front of the dwelling. Only
when it is cold and raining, at night, or for intimate uses,
do the natives retire into the interior. On a wet or windy
evening in the cooler season we should find the village

THE SEXES IN TRIBAL LIFE

streets deserted, dim lights flickering through small inter-
stices in the hut walls, and voices sounding from within in
animated conversation. Inside, in a small space heavy
with dense smoke and human exhalation, the people sit on
the floor round the fire or recline on bedsteads covered
with mats.

The houses are built directly on the ground and their
floors are of beaten earth. On the adjoining diagrammatic
plan (fig. ii) we see the main items of their very simple
furniture: the fireplace, which is simply a ring of small
stones with three large ones to support a potj wooden
sleeping bunks, placed one over another against the
back and side walls opposite the fireplace (cf. pi. 8) and
one or two shelves for nets, cooking pots, women's grass
petticoats, and other household objects. The chief's per-
sonal dwelling is built like an ordinary house, but is
larger. The yam houses are of somewhat different and
more complicated construction, and are slightly raised
above the ground.

A normal day in a typical household forces the family
to live in close intimacy — they sleep in the same hut, they
eat in common and spend the best part both of their
working and of their leisure hours together.

THE DIVISION OF PROPERTY AND DUTIES ACCORDING

TO SEX

Members of the household are also bound together by
community of economic interest. On this point, how-

riGURE 11

Bun/rz

a^^F/'rep/ace

( 1 ^

She/vej

Afiferoo/n

:5he/i/e5
-f % •

Door

PLAN OF A DWELLING HOUSE

ich. h i\

THE SEXES IN TRIBAL LIFE

ever, a more detailed statement is necessary, as the sub-
ject is important and complicated. To begin with the
right of ownership, it must be realized that personal pos-
session is a matter of great importance to the native. The
title toU- ("owner" or "master," used as a prefix to the
objea possessed) has a considerable value in itself as con-
ferring a sort of distinction, even when it does not give
a claim to rights of exclusive use. This term and the con-
ception of ownership are, in every particular case, very
well defined, but the relationship varies with different
objects, and it is impossible to summarize it in one for-
mula covering all cases.^

It is remarkable that in spite of the close union within
the household, domestic utensils and the many objects lit-
tering the hut are not owned in common. Husband and
wife have each his or her own possessions. The wife
owns her grass petticoats, of which there are usually
some twelve to twenty in her wardrobe, for use on various
occasions. Also she relies on her own skill and industry
to procure them. So that in the question of toilet, a Kir-
winian lady depends solely upon herself. The water ves-
sels, the implements for dressmaking, a number of articles
of personal adornment, are also her own property. The
man owns his tools, the axe and adze, the nets, the spears,
the dancing ornaments, and the drum, and also those
objects of high value, called by the natives vaygu^a, which
consist of necklaces, belts, armshells, and large polished
axe-blades.

Nor is private ownership in this case a mere word

^ Cf. Argonauts of the Western Pacific, ch. vi, and passim.

PROPERTY AND DUTIES

without practical significance. The husband and the wife
can and do dispose of any article of their own property,
and after the death of one of them the objects are not
inherited by the partner, but distributed among a special
class of heirs. When there is a domestic quarrel a man
may destroy some of his wife's property — he may wreak
his vengeance on the water bottles or on the grass petti-
coats— and she may smash his drum or break his dancing
shield. A man also has to repair and keep his own things
in order, so that the woman is not the housekeeper in the
general European sense.

Immovable goods, such as garden-land, trees, houses,
as well as sailing-vessels, are owned almost exclusively by
men, as is also the live stock, which consists mainly of pigs.
We shall have to touch on this subject again, when we
speak of the social position of women, for ownership of
such things goes with power.

Passing now from economic rights to duties, let us
consider the partition of work according to sex. In the
heavier type of labour, such as gardening, fishing, and
carrying of considerable loads, there is a definite division
between man and woman. Fishing and hunting, the latter
of very slight importance in the Trobriands, are done by
men, while only women engage in the search for marine
shell-fish. In gardening, the heaviest work, such as cut-
ting the scrub, making fences, fetching the heavy yam
supports, and planting the tubers, is done exclusively by
men. Weeding is the women's special duty, while some
of the intermediate stages, in which the plants have to be
looked after, are performed by mixed male and female

THE SEXES IN TRIBAL LIFE

labour. Men do such tending as there is to be done of the
COCO'- and areca-nut palms and o£ the fruit-trees, while
it is chiefly the women who look after the pigs.

All oversea expeditions are made by men, and the
building of canoes is entirely their business. Men have to
do most of the trading, especially the important exchange
of vegetable food for fish which takes place between the
inland and coastal villagers. In the building of houses,
the framework is made by men, and the women help with
the thatching. Both sexes share in the carrying of bur-
dens^ the men shoulder the heavier ones, while the women
make up by carrying more frequently. And, as we have
seen, there is a characteristic sexual distinction in the mode
of placing the burden.

As regards the minor work of manufacturing small
objects, the women have to make the mats and plait the
armlets and belts. Of course, they alone fashion their
personal dress, just as men have to tailor their own not
very extensive but very carefully finished garment, the
pubic leaf. Men do the wood carving, even in the case
of objects used exclusively by women j they manufacture
lime gourds for betel chewing and, in the old days, they
used to polish and sharpen all stone implements.

This specialization of work according to sex gives, at
certain seasons, a characteristic and picturesque touch to
village life. When harvest approaches new skirts of the
coloured variety have to be made, ready to wear when the
crops are brought in and at the subsequent festivities.
Quantities of banana and pandanus leaf are brought to
the villages, and are there bleached and toughened at the
fire. At night the whole village is bright with the shining

PROPERTY AND DUTIES

of these fires, at each of which a couple of women sit
opposite each other and pass the leaf to and fro in front
of the flame (see pi. 9). Loud chatter and song enlivens
the work, gay with the anticipation of the coming enter-
tainments. When the material is ready, it has still to be
cut, trimmed, and dyed. Two kinds of roots are brought
from the bush for the dyeing, one giving a deep purple,
and the other a bright crimson. The dye is mixed in
large bowls made of giant clam shells 5 in these the leaf
strips are steeped, and then they are hung up in thick
bunches to dry in the central place, enlivening the whole
village with their gay colour (see pi. 10). After a very
complex process of piecing together, a resplendent "crea-
tion" results 3 the golden yellow of the pandanus, the soft
hay-green or dun of the banana-leaf, the crimson and
purple of the dyed layers form a really beautiful har-
mony of colour against the smooth, brown skin of the
woman.

Some manufactures are carried out by men and women
together. Both sexes, for example, take part in the
elaborate process which is necessary in preparing certain
shell ornaments,^ while nets and water-vessels may be
made by either sex.

It will have been seen, then, that women do not bear
the brunt of all the drudgery and hard work. Indeed,
the heaviest tasks in the gardens and the most monotonous
ones are performed by men. On the other hand, women
have their own province in economic activity 5 it is a con-
spicuous one, and through it they assert their status and
importance.

^ Cf. ch. XV of Argonauts of the Western Pacific,

CHAPTER II

THE STATUS OF WOMAN IN NATIVE SOCIETY

The ideas of the native concerning kinship and descent,
with their assertion of the mother's exclusive part in
propagation 5 the position of woman within the household,
and her considerable share in economic life: these imply
that woman plays an influential role in the community,
and that her status cannot be low or unimportant. In this
section it will be necessary to consider her legal status
and her position in the tribe 5 that is, her rank, her power,
and her social independence of man.

In the first section of the previous chapter we have dis-
cussed the kinship ideas of the natives, founded on the
matrilineal principle that everything descends through the
mother. We have also seen that the real guardianship
of her family remains not with herself, but with her
brother. This can be generalized into the formula that,
in each generation, woman continues the line and man rep-
resents itj or, in other words, that the power and func-
tions which belong to a family are vested in the men of
each generation, though they have to be transmitted by
the women.

THE PRIVILEGES AND BURDENS OF RANK

Let US examine some of the consequences of this prin-
ciple. For the continuation and very existence of the

PRIVILEGES OF RANK

family, woman as well as man is indispensable 5 there-
fore both sexes are regarded by the natives as being of
equal value and importance. When you discuss genealo-
gies with a native, the question of continuity of line is
constantly considered in relation to the number of women
alive. This was noticeable whenever a man of a sub-clan
of high rank, such as the Tabalu of Omarakana, discussed
the ethnographic census of its members with me: the fact
that there was a great number of women would be em-
phasized with pleasure, and said to be good and impor-
tant. That there were only two women of that sub-clan
of high rank in Omarakana, while there were several male
members, was obviously a sore point, and every Tabalu
informant volunteered the statement that there were, how-
ever, more women in the younger line of Olivilevi, a
village in the south of the island also ruled by the Tabalu.
A man of any clan would often, in speaking of his family
relations, expatiate on the number of his sisters and of
their female children as being a matter of real importance
to his lineage. Thus girls are quite as welcome at birth as
boys, and no difference is made between them by the
parents in interest, enthusiasm, or affection. It is needless
to add that the idea of female infanticide would be as
absurd as abhorrent to the natives.

The general rule that women hand on the privileges
of the family and men exercise them, must be examined
as it works. When that is done we shall be able to under-
stand the principle better and even to qualify it somewhat.
The idea of rank — that is, of an intrinsic, social superiority
of certain people as their birthright — ^is very highly deveL

THE STATUS OF WOMAN

oped among the Trobriand Islanders 3 and a consideration
of the way in which rank aflFects the individual will best
explain the working of the general principle.

Rank is associated with definite hereditary groups of
a totemic nature, which have already been designated here
as sub-clans (see also ch. xiii, sec. 5). Each sub-clan has
a definite rank 3 it claims to be higher than some, and
admits its inferiority to others. Five or six main cate-
gories of rank can, broadly speaking, be distinguished, and
within these the minor grades are of but small impor-
tance. For the sake of brevity and clarity, I shall chiefly
concern myself with a comparison of the sub-clan of
Tabalu, the highest of all in rank, with its inferiors.

Every village community "belongs to" or is "owned
by" one such sub-clan, and the eldest male is the headman
of the village. When the sub-clan is of highest rank, its
oldest male not only is headman of his own village, but
exercises over-rule in a whole district, and is what we
have called a chief. Chieftainship and rank are, there-
fore, closely associated, and rank carries with it, not only
social distinction, but also the right to rule. Now, one of
these two attributes, but one only, social distinction, is
shared by men and women alike. Every woman of the
highest rank, that of Tabalu, enjoys all the personal
privileges of nobility. The male members of the clan
will perhaps say that man is more aristocratic, more
guya^u than woman, but probably this merely expresses
the general assumption of male superiority. In all con-
crete manifestations of rank, whether traditional or social,
the two sexes are equal. In the extensive mythology re-

PRIVILEGES OF RANK

f erring to the origin of the various sub-clans, a woman
ancestress always figures beside the man (her brother),
and there are even myths in which a woman alone inau-
^, ^urates a line.^

Another important manifestation of rank is the complex
system of taboos, and this is equally binding on man and
woman. The taboos of rank include numerous prohibi-
tions in the matter of food, certain animals especially being
forbidden, and there are some other notable restrictions,
such as that prohibiting the use of any water except from
water-holes in the coral ridge. These taboos are enforced
by supernatural sanction, and illness follows their breach,
even if it be accidental. But the real force by which they
are maintained is a strong conviction on the part of the
taboo keeper that the forbidden food is intrinsically in-
ferior, that it is disgusting and defiling in itself. When it
is suggested to a Tabalu that he should eat of stingaree
or bush pig he shows unmistakable signs of repulsion 3 and
cases are quoted in which a man of rank has vomited, with
every sign of nausea, some forbidden substance which he
had taken unwittingly. A citizen of Omarakana will
speak of the stingaree eaters of the lagoon villages with
the same disgusted contempt as the right-minded Briton
uses towards the frog- and snail-eaters of France, or the
European towards the puppy- and rotten-egg-eaters of
China.

Now a woman of rank fully shares in this disgust, and
in the danger from breaking a taboo. If, as does occa-
sionally happen, she marries a man of lower rank, she

^ Cf. my Myth in Primitive Psychology, ch. ii

THE STATUS OF WOMAN

must have all food, all cooking utensils, dishes, and drink-
ing vessels separate from her husband, or else he must
forgo all such diet as is taboo to herj the latter is the
course more usually adopted.

Rank entitles its possessors to certain ornaments, which
serve both as its insignia and as festive decorations. For
instance, a certain kind of shell ornament, the red spondy-
lus shell-discs, may only be worn on the forehead and on
the occiput by people of the highest rank. As belts and
armlets they are also permitted to those next in rank.
Again, an armlet on the forearm is a mark of the first
aristocracy. Varieties and distinctions in personal adorn-
ment are very numerous, but it will be enough to say here
that they are observed in exactly the same manner by male
and female, though the ornaments are more frequently
made use of by the latter.

Certain house decorations, on the other hand, such as
carved boards and ornaments of shell (pis. 2, 20, and 23),
which are in pattern and material exclusive to the several
higher ranks, are primarily made use of by the male
representatives. But a woman of rank who marries a
commoner would be fully entitled to have them on her
house.

The very important and elaborate ceremonial of respect
observed towards people of rank is based on the idea that
a man of noble lineage must always remain on a physically
higher level than his inferiors. In the presence of a noble,
all people of lower rank have to bow the head or bend
the body or squat on the ground, according to the degree
of their inferiority. On no account must any head reach

PRIVILEGES OF RANK

higher than that of the chief. Tall platforms are always
built on to the chief's house, and on one of these he will
sit so that the people may freely move below him during
tribal gatherings (see pi. 2, where we see the chief lean-
ing against such a platform). When a commoner passes
a group of nobles seated on the ground, even at a dis-
tance, he has to call out tokay ("arise"), and the chiefs
immediately scramble to their feet and remain standing
while he crouches past them.^ One would think that so
uncomfortable a ceremonial of homage would have been
circumvented in some way 3 but this is not the case. Many
times when I was sitting in the village in conversation with
the chief, a commoner would pass through the village
grove, and call out tokay ^ and though this would happen
every quarter of an hour or so, my friend had to rise while
the other, bending low, walked slowly by.^

Women of rank enjoy exactly the same privilege in
this matter. When a noblewoman is married to a com-
moner, her husband has to bend before her in public, and
others have to be still more careful to do so. A high
platform is erected for her and she sits upon it alone at
tribal assemblies, while her husband moves or squats be-
low with the rest of the crowd.

^ Tokay, as noun, also means "commoner." The noun is perhaps de-
rived etymologically from the verb.

2 When To'uluwa, the paramount chief of the Trobriands, was put in
jail by the resident magistrate, the latter, mostly, I am afraid, because he
wanted to humiliate his native rival, forbade the commoners incarcerated
with the chief to crouch before him. In spite of this, I have been told
on good authority by several eye-witnesses that all the commoners in jail
did constantly move bending, except when the white satrap appeared upon
the scene. This is an example of the short-sighted policy of^ the typical
white official, who thinks that his authority can only be maintained at the
expense of the native chiefs, and thus undermines native tribal law and
introduces a spirit of anarchy.

THE STATUS OF WOMAN

The sanctity of the chief's person is particularly local-
ized in his head, which is surrounded by a halo of strict
taboos. More especially sacred are the forehead and the
occiput with the neck. Only equals in rank, the wives and
a few particularly privileged persons, are allowed to touch
these parts, for purposes of cleaning, shaving, ornamenta-
tion, and delousing. This sanctity of the head extends to
the female members of the noble sub-clans, and if a
noblewoman marries a commoner, her brow, her occiput,
her neck and shoulders, should not — in theory at least —
be touched by the husband even during the most intimate
phases of conjugal life.

Thus in myth, in the observation of taboo, and in the
ceremonial of bending, the woman enjoys exactly the same
privileges of rank as the man 3 but she never exercises
the actual power associated with it. No woman is ever the
head of any sub-clan, and thus she cannot be a chief tainess.
What would happen should there be no male members in
a given generation I cannot say, for there are no actual
cases of this on record j but the interim regency of a woman
seems by no means incompatible with the ideas of the
Trobrianders. But, as we shall see later on (ch. v, sec. 4),
the privilege of polygamy is the foundation of a chief's or
iieadman's power, and women, of course, have no such
similar privilege of polyandry.

Many other social functions of rank are directly exer-
cised by men alone, the women participating only in the
social prestige. Thus ownership of canoes, for instance,
as vested in the headman — ^though all the villagers enjoy
definite rights in them — ^but his kinswomen only have

PRIVILEGES OF RANK

the benefit of the renown (hutura)^ that is, the privilege
of talking in proprietary terms of the canoes and of boast-
ing about them.^ Only in exceptional cases do they accom-
pany their men-folk on oversea expeditions. Again, all
sorts of rights, privileges, and activities connected with
the kulay a special system of exchange in valuables, are
the prerogatives of men. The woman, whether the man's
wife or sister, is only occasionally drawn personally into
the matter. For the most part she but basks in reflected
glory and satisfaction. In war, men have the field of
action entirely to themselves, though the women witness
all the preparations and preliminary ceremonies, and even
take an occasional peep at the battlefield itself.^

It is important to note that in this section, when com-
paring the parts played by the sexes, we have had quite as
often to set the brother and sister side by side as the hus-
band and wife. Within the matrilineal order, the brother
and the sister are the naturally linked representatives of
the male and female principle respectively in all legal
and customary matters. In the myths concerning the
origin of families, the brother and sister emerge together
from underground, through the original hole in the earth.
In family matters, the brother is the natural guardian and
head of his sister's household, and of her children. In
tribal usage, their respective duties and obligations are
strictly regulated, and these form, as we shall see, one of

1 These questions have been discussed in detail in Argonauts of the
Western Pacific, ch. iv, sees, iv and v, and ch. xi, sec. ii. Cf. also ch. vi
of that book, and Crime and Custom.

2 For a full description of the kula, see Argonauts; fighting has been
described in the article on "War and Weapons Among the Natives of the
Trobriand Islands," Man, 1920.

.1?

THE STATUS OF WOMAN

the main strands in the social fabric. But in their personal
relations the strictest taboo divides brother from sister —
and prevents any sort of intimacy between them/

As woman is debarred from the exercise of power, land
ownership, and many other public privileges, it follows
that she has no place at tribal gatherings and no voice
in such public deliberations as are held in connection with
gardening, fishing, hunting, oversea expeditions, war, cere-
monial trade, festivities and dances.

MORTUARY RITES AND FESTIVITIES

On the other hand, there are certain ceremonial and
festive activities in connection with which women have
a great deal both to say and to do. The most important
of these in solemnity and sanctity, as well as the most
imposing in display and extent, are the mortuary cere-
monies. In the tending of the corpse, the parade of grief,
the burial with its manifold rites and long series of cere-
monial food distributions: in all these activities, which
begin immediately after the death of any important tribes-
man and continue at intervals for months or ^ven years
afterwards, women play a large part and have their own
definite duties to fulfil. Certain women, standing in a
special relationship to the deceased, have to hold the corpse
on their knees, and fondle itj and while the corpse is
tended in the hut, another category of female relatives
performs a remarkable rite of mourning outside: a number

1 Cf. ch. xiii, sec. 6, and ch. xlv.

MORTUARY RITES

of them, some in couples facing each other and some
singly, move in a slow dance, forwards and backwards
across the central place, to the rhythm of the wailing dirge
(see pi. 1 1). As a rule, each of them carries in her hand
some object worn or possessed by the deceased. Such
relics play a great part in mourning and are worn by the
women for a long time after their bereavement. The
wrapping up of the corpse and the subsequent vigil over
the grave is the duty of yet another category of the dead
man's womenkind.

Some functions of burial, notably the gruesome custom
of cutting up the corpse, are performed by men. In the
long period of mourning which follows, the burden of the
dramatic expression of grief falls mostly on the women j
a widow always mourns longer than a widower, a mother
longer than a father, a female relative longer than a male
of the same degree. In the mortuary distributions of food
and wealth, based on the idea that the members of the
deceased's sub-clan give payment to the other relatives for
their share in the mourning, women play a conspicuous
role, and conduct some parts of the ceremonial distribu-
tions themselves (see pi. 12).

I have barely touched on the mortuary ceremonies, as
we shall have to return to them presently (ch. vi, sees.
3 and 4), but I have said enough to show how large a
share women take in this class of religious or ceremonial
display. Some tribal ceremonies in which women alone
are active will be described in detail later, and it is only
necessary here to state briefly that in the long and com-
plicated ceremonial of first pregnancy (ch. viii, sees. I and

THE STATUS OF WOMAN

2) and in the rites o£ beauty magic at festivities (ch. xi,
sees. 2-4) women are the main actors. On certain occa-
sions, such as first pregnancy ritual and the first appear-
ance after childbirth, as well as at big tribal dances and
kayasa (competitive displays), women appear in full dress
and decoration (pi. 13), which correspond to the men's
full festive attire (as seen on pis. 14 and 79).

An interesting incident occurs during the milamalay the
annual season of dancing and feasting held after the
harvest. This period is inaugurated by a ceremony, the
principal aim of which is to break the taboo on drums.
In this initial feast there is a distribution of food, and the
men, adorned in full dancing attire, range themselves for
the performance, the drummers and the singers in the
centre of a ring formed by the decorated dancers. As in
a normal dance, standing in the central place, the singers
intone a chant, the dancers begin to move slowly and the
drummers to beat time. But they are not allowed to
proceed: almost at the first throb of the drums, there
breaks forth from inside the huts the wailing of those
women who are still in mourning 5 from behind the inner
row of houses, a crowd of shrieking, agitated female
figures rush out and attack the dancers, beat them with
sticks, and throw coconuts, stones, and pieces of wood at
them. The men are not bound by custom to display too
considerable courage and in a trice the drummers, who
had so solemnly initiated the performance, have entirely
disappeared j and the village lies empty, for the women
pursue the fugitives. But the taboo is broken and, on the

MORTUARY RITES

afternoon of the same day, the first undisturbed dance of
the festivities is held.

In full dress dancing (see pis. 14, 58, 6$, 73, 82), it
is mainly the men who display their beauty and skill. In
some dances, such as those performed in a quick tempo
with carved dancing boards or with bunches of streamers
or in conventionalized imitation of animals, men alone
may participate (pis. 6$, 73, 82). Only in one tradi-
tional type of dance, for which men put on the fibre pet-
ticoats of the female (see pis. 3, 58), are women not
debarred by custom from participation. But though I
witnessed scores of performances of this type, I only once
saw a wqmanly actually dance, and she was of the very
highest rank. As passive witnesses and admirers, how-
ever, women form a very important adjunct to this form
of display.

There are many other long, continuous periods of
amusement in the Trobriands besides the dancing season,
and in these women take a more active share. The nature
of the amusement is fixed in advance, and has to remain
the same during the whole period. There are different
kinds of kayasa, as these entertainments are called (see
ch. ix, sees. 2-4). There is a kayasa in which, evening
after evening, groups of women, festively adorned, sit on
mats and sing; in another, men and women, wearing
wreaths and garlands of flowers, exchange such ornaments
with each other 5 or a kayasa is announced, the main theme
of which is a general daily display of a certain type of
ornament. Sometimes the members of a community pre-
pare small toy sailing canoes and hold a miniature regatta

THE STATUS OF WOMAN

daily on shallow water. There can be also a kayasa of
erotic pastimes. Some of these entertainments are exclu-
sively feminine (singing and certain ornaments) j in others
both sexes participate (flowers, erotics, and hair decora-
tion) j in others only men (the toy canoes).

In all the public festivals and entertainments, whether
women take an active part or no, they are never excluded
from looking on or freely mixing with the men 5 and this
they do on terms of perfect equality, exchanging banter
and jokes with them and engaging in easy conversation.

One aspect of public life is very important to the
Trobriander and stands apart as something peculiar and
specific. The native sets on one side a certain category
of facts, one type of human behaviour, and designates
these by the word megway which may be quite adequately
translated as "magic." Magic is very intimately associated
with economic life and indeed with every vital concern 5 it
is also an instrument of power and an index of the im-
portance of those who practise it. The position of women
in magic deserves therefore very special consideration.

Magic constitutes a particular aspect of reality. In all
important activities and enterprises in which man has not
the issue firmly and safely in hand, magic is deemed
indispensable. Thus appeal is m'ade to it in gardening
and fishing, in building a large canoe, and in diving for
valuable shell, in the regulation of wind and weather, in

WOMAN'S SHARE IN MAGIC

war, in matters of love and personal attraction, in secur-
ing safety at sea and the success of any great enterprise j
and, last but not least, in health and for the infliction of
ailments upon an enemy. Success and safety in all these
matters is largely and sometimes entirely dependent upon
magic, and can be controlled by its proper application.
Fortune or failure, dearth or plenty, health or disease are
felt and believed to be mainly due to the right magic
rightly applied in the right circumstances.

Magic consists of spells and rites performed by a man
who is entitled by the fulfilment of several conditions to
perform them. Magical power resides primarily in the
words of the formula, and the function of the rite, which
is as a rule very simple, is mainly to convey the magician's
breath, charged with the power of the words, to the
object or person to be affected. All magical spells are,
believed to have descended unchanged from time imme-
morial, from the beginning of things.

This last point has its sociological corollary 5 several
systems of magic are hereditary, each in a special sub-
clan, and such a system has been possessed by that sub-clan
since the time it came out from underground. • It can only
be performed by a member, and is, of course, one of the
valued attributes and possessions of the sub-clan itself.
It is handed on in the female line, though usually, as with
other forms of power and possession, it is exercised by
men alone. But in a few cases such hereditary magic can
also be practised by women.

The power given by magic to its performer is not due
merely to the effects of its specific influence. In the most

THE STATUS OF WOMAN

important types of magic the rites are intimately inter-
woven with the activities which they accompany and are
not merely superimposed upon them. Thus, in garden
magic, the officiator plays an economically and socially
important role and is the organizer and director of the
work. It is the same in the building of a canoe and its
magic, and in the rites associated with the conduct of an
oversea expedition: the man who technically directs and is
the leader of the enterprise has also the duty or privilege
of performing the magic."^ Both functions, the directive
and the magical, are indivisibly united in the same person.
In other types of magic, which are placed by the natives
in the category of buluhwalata (black magic) — ^and this
comprises all sorcery and, among others, the charms for
drought or rain — the practitioner has an immense and
direct influence over other tribesmen. Magic is indeed
by far the most efficient and frequently used instrument
of power.

As magic is so intimately bound up with the activity
which it accompanies, it is clear that, in certain types of
occupation, the division of functions between the sexes
will involve a corresponding division in magical per-
formance. Those types of work which customarily only
men perform will demand a man as officiating magician 5
where women are occupied with their own business, the
magician must be female. Thus, looking at the table
given below, we see that in fishing and hunting, as well
as in wood carving, activities in which no woman ever
participates, magic is exclusively practised by men. War

1 Cf. Argonauts of the Western Paci^c, csp. chs. iv, r, vii, and xvii.

WOMAN'S SHARE IN MAGIC

magic, too, which is now in abeyance, was an hereditary
system of spells and rites always practised by a man of a
certain sub-clan. The long and complex series of spells
which accompany the building of a sea-going canoe can
never be made by a v/oman, and, as no woman ever goes-
on a ceremonial overseas expedition, the magic of safety
and of kula which then has to be performed can only be
done by a man.

Division of Magic Between the Sexes

Male

Public garden magic

( Towosi)
Fishing
Hunting
Canoe building
Magic of kula

(Mivasila)
Weather (sun and

rain)
Wind

War magic (Boma)
Safety at sea

{Kayga'u)
Wood carving {Kabi-

tam)
Sorcery {Bivaga'u)

Female

Rites of first preg-
nancy

Skirt making

Prevention of dangers
at birth

Toothache

Elephantiasis, swell-
ings

Affections of the geni-
tals with discharge
(Gonorrhoea?)

Abortion

Female witchcraft
{Yoyova or Muluk-
loausi)

Mixed

Beauty magic

Love magic

Private garden magic

Again there are some important types of magic which
are obviously adapted to female hands and lips, for they
are attached to activities or functions which by their nature
or by social convention exclude the presence of men. Such
is the magic associated with the ceremony of first preg-
nancy (see ch. viii, sees, i and 2) 5 the magic of the expert
which gives skill in the manufacture of fibre petticoats j
and the magic of abortion.

There are, however, mixed spheres of activity and in-

THE STATUS OF WOMAN

fluence, such as gardening or love-making, the control of
the weather or human health, where at first glance there
appears to be no association with one sex rather than the
other. Yet garden magic is invariably a man's concern
and women never perform the important public rites,
most scrupulously observed and highly valued by the
natives, which are carried out by the village magician over
the gardens of the whole community.^ Even those phases
of gardening, such as weeding, which are undertaken ex-
clusively by women, have to be inaugurated by the male
garden magician in an official ceremony. Wind, sunshine,
and rain are also controlled entirely by male hands and
mouths.

In certain mixed activities a man or a woman can equally
well perform the required magic, and some minor rites
of private garden magic, used by each individual for his
or her own benefit, can be carried out indiscriminately by
men or women. There is the magic of love and beauty,
of which the spells are recited by anyone who suffers from
unrequited love or needs to enhance his or her personal
charm. Again, on certain occasions, such, for instance,
as the big tribal festivals, the spells of beauty are publicly
recited by women over men (ch. xi, sqc. 3), and, at other
times, men apply a form of beauty magic to their own
persons and ornaments.^

The most definite allocation of magical powers to one

1 In the Amphlett Islands, on the other hand, garden magic is made
mainly if not exclusively by women. Among the natives of Dobu Island
and on the north-eastern shores of Dawson Straits in the d'Entrecasteaux
Archipelago, women also play a preponderating role in garden magic.

2 Cf. Argonauts of the Western Pacific, ch. xiii, sec. i.

WOMAN'S SHARE IN MAGIC

or other of the sexes is to be found in the dark and
dreaded forces of sorcery: those forces which most pro-;-
foundly affect human hope and happiness. The magic
of illness and health, which can poison life or restore its
natural sweetness, and which holds death as it were for
its last card, can be made by men and women alike j but
its character changes entirely with the sex of the prac-
titioner. Man and woman have each their own sorcery,
carried on by means of different rites and formulae, acting
in a different manner on the victim's body and surrounded
by an altogether different atmosphere of belief. Male
sorcery is much more concrete, and its methods can be
stated clearly, almost as a rational system. The sorcerer's
supernatural equipment is restricted to his power of van-
ishing at will, of emitting a shining glow from his person,
and of having accomplices among the nocturnal birds.
Extremely poor means of supernatural action if we com-
pare them with the achievements of a witch!

A witch — and be it remembered that she is always a real
woman and not a spiritual or non-human being — ^goes out
on her nightly errand in the form of an invisible double j
she can fly through the air and appears as a falling star j
she. assumes at will the shape of a fire-fly, of a night bird
or of a flying-fox j she can hear and smell at enormous
distances 5 she is endowed with sarcophagous propensities,
and feeds on corpses.

The disease which witches cause is almost incurable and
extremely rapid in its action, killing, as a rule, immedi-
ately. It is inflicted by the removal of the victim's inside,
which the woman presently consumes. The wizard, on

THE STATUS OF WOMAN '

the other hand, never partakes of his victim's flesh, his
power is much less effective, he must proceed slowly, and
the best he can hope for is to inflict a lingering disease,
which may, with good luck, kill after months or years of
steady labour. Even then another sorcerer can be hired
to counteract his work and restore the patient. But there
is little chance of combating a witch, even if the help of
another witch be sought immediately.

A witch, when she is not old, is no less desirable sex-
ually than other women. Indeed, she is surrounded by
a halo of glory due to her personal power, and usually
she has also that strong individuality which seems to ac-
company the reputation for witchcraft. The attraction
which a marriageable young witch has for the other sex
need not be altogether disinterested, for witchcraft is
occasionally a source of income and of personal influence
in which it is pleasant to have a share. But the profes-
sion of witch, unlike that of sorcerer, is not exercised
openly 3 a witch may receive payment for healing, but
she never undertakes to kill for a fee. In this again she
differs from the sorcerer who derives the greater part of
his income from black rather than from curative practice.
Indeed, even when a woman is generally known to be a
witch, she is never supposed to admit it explicitly, even
to her husband.

Witchcraft is inherited from mother to daughter, and
an early initiation has to take place. In later life, the
art of female necromancy is sometimes further enhanced
by less reputable means. Some women are said to have
sexual relations with non-human, highly malignant beings

WOMAN'S SHARE IN MAGIC

called tauva^u who bring epidemics and various evils
upon the people (see ch. xii, sec. 4). By them they are
further instructed in the art of harming, and such women
are greatly feared. Several of my personal acquaintance
were definitely pointed out as having a leman from the
sphere of tauva*Uy notably the wife of the headman o£
Obweria, a very intelligent and enterprising character,
who is seen, as the main performer, on plates 77 and 78.

From the point of view of the investigating sociologist,
the most important difference between male and female
sorcery lies in the fact that the wizard actually carries on
his trade, while the witch's activity exists only in folk-
lore and in the imagination of the native. That is to say,
a sorcerer actually knows the magic of his trade j when
called upon he will utter it over the proper substances j
will go out at night to waylay his victim or visit him in
his hut J and in certain cases, I suspect, may even admin-
ister poison. The witch, on the other hand, however
much she may be believed to play the part of a yoyoyUy
does not — needless to say — ^really fly or abstract the in-
sides of people, and she knows no spells or rites, since
this type of female magic lives merely in legend and
fiction.

There are a number of minor ailments, among them
toothache, certain tumours, swelling of the testicles and
genital discharge (gonorrhoea?), which woman can inflict
on man by means of magic. Toothache is exclusively a
female specialty, and one woman will be called in to
cure it when some other has caused it. A witch can pro-
duce it through her magical power over a small beetle

THE STATUS OF WOMAN

called kifyiy which is very similar to the one which makes
holes in taro. The resemblance between dental caries and
the cavities bored by the beetle in taro is a sufficient proof
that similar effects have been produced by similar causes.
But some of my informants had actually seen the small
black scarab fall out of a man's mouth while a woman was
performing the curative formula.

There are, as we have seen, forms of hereditary magic
which can be -carried on only by male members of a sub-
clan, or, exceptionally, by the son of such a member.
(And in the latter case he has to relinquish it at his fa-
ther's death.) Now, if the males of a certain generation
were to die out, a woman could learn such magic, though
she would not be allowed to practise it, and when she
bore a male heir to her sub-clan, would teach him the
formula for his future use. Thus woman can tide over
the gap of one generation, carrying in her memory a sys-
tem of garden magic, or weather and wind charms, or
spells for fishing, hunting, canoe building, and oversea
trade. She can even preserve a system of war magic,
but she must never learn the formula of masculine sor-
cery, which is strictly taboo to the female sex. Nor is
there any necessity for her to do so, since this magic is
never strictly hereditary within a sub-clan.

Thus we see that the strong tribal position of women
is also buttressed by their right to exercise magic — that
toughest and least destructible substance of belief.

And now, in order to summarize briefly the results of
this chapter and the previous one, let us imagine that we

WOMAN'S SHARE IN MAGIC

are taking a bird's-eye view of a native village, and are
trying to form a compound moving picture of the life of
the community. Casting our glance over the central
place, the street, and the surrounding grove and garden
land, we see them peopled by men and women mixing
freely and on terms of equality. Sometimes they go to-
gether to work in the garden, or to collect food-stuffs in
the jungle or on the sea-shore. Or else they separate,
each sex forming a group of workers engaged in some
special activity, and performing it efficiently and with
interest. Men predominate on the central place, discuss-
ing, perhaps, in a communal gathering the prospects of
the garden, or preparing for an oversea expedition or
for some ceremony. The street is peopled by women,
busying themselves with household work, and there the
men will presently join them, helping them to amuse
the children or in some domestic task. We can hear the
women scold their husbands, usually in a very good-
natured manner.

Let us suppose our attention to be drawn to some sin-
gular event, to a death, a tribal squabble, a division of
inherited wealth, or to some ceremony. We watch it
with understanding eyes, and see, side by side, the work-
ings of tribal law and custom, and the play of personal
passion and interest. We see the influence of matrilineal
principles, the working of paternal rule, usages of tribal
authority, and the results of totemic division in the clans
and sub-clans. In all this there is a balance between the
influence of male and female, the man wields the power
while the woman determines its distribution.

THE STATUS OF WOMAN

Or perhaps the central place is thronged by a mixed
gathering, gay with festive dress and decorations. Women
move with a soft swaying motion in their holiday attire,
coquettishly aware of the lines of their bodies and the
elegant swish-swish of their full, crimson, purple, and
golden skirts. The men are more soberly dressed, and
affect a stiff, immovable dignity. They move very little,
unless they are among the performers in the dance or
other festive function. These last are covered gorgeously
with ornaments, and are instinct with life and motion.
The performance starts j it is carried on sometimes by
men only, and sometimes by women. As it progresses,
later in the afternoon or in the evening, the young men
and women begin to show some interest in each other:
here and there snatches of conversation, bursts of laugh-
ter and giggling can be heard. Nothing in the slightest
degree obscene, indecent, or sexually improper can be
observed in their behaviour, though their vocabulary is
by no means prim. But, since we understand this com-
munity. We know that assignations are being made and
intrigues inaugurated. Thus we are led up to the closer
study of the erotic phase of native life 5 and we now
proceed to a systematic description of this subject.

CHAPTER III

PRENUPTIAL INTERCOURSE BETWEEN THE

SEXES

The Trobrianders are very free and easy in their sexual
relations. To a superficial observer it might indeed ap-
pear that they are entirely untrammelled in these. This,
however, is not the case 3 for their liberty has certain
very well-defined limits. The best way of showing this
will be to give a consecutive account of the various stages
through which a man and a woman pass from childhood
to maturity — a sort of sexual life-history of a representa-
tive couple.

We shall have first to consider their earliest years, for
these natives begin their acquaintance with sex at a very
tender age. The unregulated and, as it were, capricious
intercourse of these early years becomes systematized in
adolescence into more or less stable intrigues, which later
on develop into permanent liaisons. Connected with these
latter stages of sexual life, there exists in the Trobriand
Islands an extremely interesting institution, the bachelors'
and unmarried girls' house, called by the natives buku-
matula; it is of considerable importance, as it is one of
those arrangements sanctioned by custom which might
appear on the surface to be a form of "group-marriage."

PRENUPTIAL INTERCOURSE

THE SEXUAL LIFE OF CHILDREN

Children in the Trobriand Islands enjoy considerable
freedom and independence. They soon become emanci-
pated from a parental tutelage which has never been
very strict. Some of them obey their parents willingly,
but this is entirely a matter of the personal character of
both parties: there is no idea of a regular discipline, no
system of domestic coercion. Often as I sat among them,,
observing some family incident or listening to a quarrel
between parent and child, I would hear a youngster told
to do this or that, and generally the thing, whatever it
was, would be asked as a favour, though sometimes the
request might be backed up by a threat of violence. The
parents would either coax or scold or ask as from one
equal to another. A simple command, implying the ex-
pectation of natural obedience, is never heard from
parent to child in the Trobriands.

People will sometimes grow angry with their children
and beat them in an outburst of ragej but I have quite
as often seen a child rush furiously at his parent and
strike him. This attack might be received with a good-
natured smile, or the blow might be angrily returned 5
but the idea of definite retribution, or of coercive pun-
ishment, is not only foreign, but distinctly repugnant tO'
the native. Several times, when I suggested, after some
flagrant infantile misdeed, that it would mend matters
for the future if the child were beaten or otherwise pun-

SEXUAL LIFE OF CHILDREN

ished in cold blood, the idea appeared unnatural and im-
moral to my friends, and was rejected with some re-
sentment.

Such freedom gives scope for the formation of the
children's own little community, an independent group,
into which they drop naturally from the age of four or
five and continue till puberty. As the mood prompts
them, they remain with their parents during the day, or
else join their playmates for a time in their small republic
(see pis. 15, 16, and 17). And this community within a
community acts very much as its own members determine,
standing often in a sort of collective opposition to its
elders. If the children make up their minds to do a cer-
tain thing, to go for a day's expedition, for instance, the
grown-ups and even the chief himself, as I often ob-
served, will not be able to stop them. In my ethno-
graphic work I was able and was indeed forced to collect
my information about children and their concerns directly
from them. Their spiritual ownership in games and
childish activities was acknowledged, and they were also
quite capable of instructing me and explaining the in-
tricacies of their play or enterprise (see pi. 15).

Small children begin also to understand and to defer
to tribal tradition and custom 5 to those restrictions which
have the character of a taboo or of a definite command
of tribal law, or usage or propriety.^

1 The processes by which respect for tribal taboo and tradition is in-
stilled in the child are described throughout this book, especially in ch.
xiii. Custom must not be personified nor is its authority absolute or
autonomous, but it is derived from specific social and psychological mech-
anisms. Cf. my Crime and Custom, 1926.

PRENUPTIAL INTERCOURSE

The child's freedom and independence extend also to
sexual matters. To begin with, children hear of and
witness much in the sexual life of their elders. Within
the house, where the parents have no possibility of find-
ing privacy, a child has opportunities of acquiring prac-
tical information concerning the sexual act. I was told
that no special precautions are taken to prevent children
from witnessing their parents' sexual enjoyment. The
child would merely be scolded and told to cover its head
with a mat. I sometimes heard a little boy or girl praised
in these terms: "Good child, he never tells what happens
between his parents." Young children are allowed to
listen to baldly sexual talk, and they understand per-
fectly well what is being discussed. They are also
themselves tolerably expert in swearing and the use of
obscene language. Because of their early mental develop-
ment some quite tiny children are able to make smutty
jokes, and these their elders will greet with laughter.

Small girls follow their fathers on fishing expeditions,
during which the men remove their pubic leaf. Naked-
ness under these conditions is regarded as natural, since
it is necessary. There is no lubricity or ribaldry asso-
ciated with it. Once, when I was engaged in the discus-
sion of an obscene subject, a little girl, the daughter of
one of my informants, joined our group. I asked the
father to tell her to go away. "Oh, no," he answered,
"she is a good girl, she never repeats to her mother any-
thing that is said among men. When we take her fish-
ing with us we need not be ashamed. Another girl would
describe the details of our nakedness to her companions

SEXUAL LIFE OF CHILDREN

or her mothers/ Then these will chaflF us and repeat
what they have heard about us. This little girl never
"says a word." The other men present enthusiastically
assented, and developed the theme of the girl's discre-
tion. But a boy is much less in contact with his mother
in such matters, for here, between maternal relations,
that is, for the natives, between real kindred, the taboo
of incest begins to act at an early age, and the boy is re-
moved from any intimate contact of this sort with his
mother and above all with his sisters.

There are plenty of opportunities for both boys and
girls to receive instruction in erotic matters from their
companions. The children initiate each other into the
mysteries of sexual life in a directly practical manner at
a very early age. A premature amorous existence begins
among them long before they are able really to carry
out the act of sex. They indulge in plays and pastimes
in which they satisfy their curiosity concerning the ap-
pearance and function of the organs of generation, and
incidentally receive, it would seem, a certain amount of
positive pleasure. Genital manipulation and such minor
perversions as oral stimulation of the organs are typical
forms of this amusement. Small boys and girls are said
to be frequently initiated by their somewhat older com-
panions, who allow them to witness their own amorous
dalliance. As they are untrammelled by the authority of
their elders' and unrestrained by any moral code, except
that of specific tribal taboo, there is nothing but their de-

1 That Is, "classificatory mothers," mother, maternal aunts, etc. Cf. ch.
ixiii, sees. 5 and 6,

PRENUPTIAL INTERCOURSE

gree of curiosity, of ripeness, and of "temperament" or
sensuality, to determine how much or how little they
shall indulge in sexual pastimes.

The attitude of the grown-ups and even of the parents
towards such infantile indulgence is either that of com-
plete indijfference or that of complacency — ^they find it
natural, and do not see why they should scold or interfere.
Usually they show a kind of tolerant and amused inter-
est, and discuss the love affairs of their children with
easy jocularity. I often heard some such benevolent gos-
sip as this: "So-and-so (a little girl) has already had
intercourse with So-and-so (a little boy)." And if such
were the case, it would be added that it was her- first
experience. An exchange of lovers, or some small love
drama in the little world would be half-seriously, half-
jokingly discussed. The infantile sexual act, or its sub-
stitute, is regarded as an innocent amusement. "It is
their play to kayta (to have intercourse). They give
each other a coconut, a small piece of betel-nut, a few
beads or some fruits from the bush, and then they go
and hide, and kayta,^^ But it is not considered proper for
the children to carry on their affairs in the house. It has
always to be done in the bush.

The age at which a girl begins to amuse herself in this
manner is said to coincide with her putting on the small
fibre skirt, between, that is, the ages of four and five.
But this obviously can refer only to incomplete practices
and not to the real act. Some of my informants insisted
that such small female children actually have intercourse
with penetration. Remembering, however, the Trobri-

SEXUAL LIFE OF CHILDREN

ander's very strong tendency to exaggerate in the direc-
tion of the grotesque, a tendency not altogether devoid
of a certain malicious Rabelaisian humour, I am inclined
to discount those statements of my authorities. If we
place the beginning of real sexual life at the age of six
to eight in the case of girls, and ten to twelve in the case
of boys, we shall probably not be erring very greatly in
either direction. And from these times sexuality will
gradually assume a greater and greater importance as life
goes on, until it abates in the course of nature.

Sexual, or at least sensuous, pleasure constitutes if not
the basis of, at least an element in, many of the children's
pastimes. Some of them do not, of course, provide any
sexual excitement at all, as for instance those in imitation
of the grown-up economic and ceremonial activities (see
pi. 17), or games of skill or childish athletics 5 but all
sorts of round games, which are played by the children
of both sexes on the central place of the village, have a
more or less strongly marked flavour of sex, though the
outlets they furnish are indirect and only accessible to the
elder youths and maidens, who also join in them. In-
deed, we shall have to return later (chs. ix and xi) to a
consideration of sex in certain games, songs, and stones,
for as the sexual association becomes more subtle and
indirect it appeals more and more to older people alone
and has, therefore, to be examined in the contexts of later
life.

There are, however, some specific games in which the
older children never participate, and into which sex di-
rectly enters. The little ones sometimes play, for in-

PRENUPTIAL INTERCOURSE

stance, at house-building, and at family life. A small
hut of sticks and boughs is constructed in a secluded part
of the jungle, and a couple or more repair thither and
play at husband and wife, prepare food and carry out or
imitate as best they can the act of sex. Or else a band
of them, in imitation of the amorous expeditions of their
elders, carry food to some favourite spot on the sea-shore
or in the coral ridge, cook and eat vegetables there, and
"when they are full of food, the boys sometimes fight
with each other, or sometimes kayta (copulate) with the
girls." When the fruit ripens on certain wild trees in the
jungle they go in parties to pick it, to exchange presents,
make kula (ceremonial exchange) of the fruit, and en-
gage in erotic pastimes.^

Thus it will be seen that they have a tendency to pal-
liate the crudity of their sexual interest and indulgence
by associating it with something more poetic. Indeed, the
Trobriand children show a great sense of the singular and
romantic in their games. For instance, if a part of the
jungle or village has been flooded by rain, they go and
sail their small canoes on this new watery or if a very
strong sea has thrown up some interesting flotsam, they
proceed to the beach and inaugurate some imaginative
game around it. The little boys, too, search for unusual
animals, insects, or flowers, and give them to the little
girls, thus lending a redeeming aesthetic touch to their
premature eroticisms.

In spite of the importance of the sexual motive in the

1 For a description of the real kula, cf. Argonauts of the Western
Pacific,

AGE DIVISIONS

life of the youngest generation, it must be kept in mind
that the separation of the sexes, in many matters, obtains
also among children. Small girls can very often be seen
playing or wandering in independent parties by them-
selves. Little boys in certain moods — and these seem
their more usual ones — scorn the society of the female
and amuse themselves alone (pi. 17). Thus the small
republic falls into two distinct groups which are perhaps
to be seen more often apart than together j and, though
they frequently unite in play, this need by no means be
necessarily sensuous.

It is important to note that there is no interference by
older persons in the sexual life of children. On rare
occasions some old man or woman is suspected of taking
a strong sexual interest in the children, and even of hav-
ing intercourse with some of them. But I never found
such suspicions supported even by a general consensus of
opinion, and it was always considered both improper and
silly for an older man or woman to have sexual dealings
with a child. There is certainly no trace of any custom
of ceremonial defloration by old men, or even by men
belonging to an older age class.

AGE DIVISIONS

I have just used the expression "age class," but I did
so in a broad sense only: for there are no sharply distin-
guished age grades or classes among the Trobriand na-
tives. The following table of age designations only

PRENUPTIAL INTERCOURSE

roughly indicates the stages of their life 3 for these stages
in practice merge into one another.

Designations of Age

1. JVaywaya (foetus; infant till the age of"^
crawling, both male and female)

2. Piuapiua'iva (infant, till the stage of walk-
ing, male or female)

3. Giuadi (child, till puberty, male or female)

4. Monag'wadi (male 4. Inagivadi (female
child) child)

5. To'ulaiile (youth
from puberty till
marriage)

6. Tobuhonva'u (ma-
ture man)

6a. Tovavaygile (mar-
ried man)

7. Tomivaya (old
man)

7fl. Toboma (old
honoured man)

5. Nakapugula or
N akubukivabuya
(girl from puberty I
till marriage)

6. Nabuboiva'u (ripej
woman)

6a. Navavaygile
(married woman)

7. Numivaya (old
woman)

I. Stage : Givadi —
Word used as a
generic designation
for all these stages
1-4, meaning child,
male or female, at
any time between
birth and maturity

II. Stage: Generic
designations — Ta'u
(man), Vivila
(woman)

III. Stage: Old age

The terms used in this table will be found to overlap
in some instances. Thus a very small infant may be re-
ferred to as waywaya or fwafwawa indiscriminately, but
only the former term as a rule would be used in speaking
of a foetus or referring to the pre-incarnated children
from Tuma.^ Again, you might call a few months old
child either gwadi or fwafwaway but the latter term
would be but seldom used except for a very small baby.
The term gwadi moreover can be used generically, as
"child" in English, to denote anything from a foetus to
a young boy or girl. Thus, it will be seen that two terms
may encroach on each other's field of meaning, but only

1 Cf . ch. vii, sec. a.

LIFE OF ADOLESCENCE

if they be consecutive. The terms with sex prefixes (4)
are normally used only of elder children who may be dis-
tinguished by their dress.

There are, besides these more specific subdivisions, the
three main distinctions of age, between the ripe man and
woman in the full vigour of life and the two stages —
those of childhood and of old age^which limit man-
hood and womanhood on either side. The second main
stage is divided into two parts, mainly by the fact of mar-
riage. Thus, the words under (5) primarily designate
unmarried people and to that extent are opposed to (60),
but they also imply youth fulness or unripeness, and in
that respect are opposed to (6).

The male term for old age, tomwuya (7) can also de-
note rank or importance. I myself was often so ad-
dressed, but I was not flattered, and much preferred to
be called tohoma (literally "the tabooed man"), a name
given to old men of rank, but stressing the latter attribute
rather than the former. Curiously enough, the compli-
ment or distinction implied in the word tomwaya be-
comes much weaker, and almost disappears in its feminine
equivalent. Numwaya conveys that tinge of scorn or
ridicule inseparable from "old woman" in so many lan-
guages.

THE AMOROUS LIFE OF ADOLESCENCE

When a boy reaches the age of from twelve to four-
teen years, and attains that physical vigour which comes
with sexual maturity, and when, above all, his increased

PRENUPTIAL INTERCOURSE

strength and mental ripeness allow him to take part,
though still in a somewhat limited and fitful manner, in
some of the economic activities of his elders, he ceases to
be regarded as a child (gwadi)^ and assumes the position
of adolescent {ulatile or to^ulatile). At the same time
he receives a different status, involving some duties and
many privileges, a stricter observance of taboos, and a
greater participation in tribal affairs. He has already
donned the pubic leaf for some time 5 now he becomes
more careful in his, wearing of it, and more interested in
its appearance. The girl emerges from childhood into
adolescence through the obvious bodily changes: "her
breasts are round and fullj her bodily hair begins to
growj her menses flow and ebb with every moon," as the
natives put it. She also has no new change in her attire
to make, for she has much earlier assumed her fibre skirt,
but now her interest in it from the two points of view of
elegance and decorum is greatly increased.

At this stage a partial break-up of the family takes
place. Brothers and sisters must be segregated in obedi-
ence to that stringent taboo which plays such an important
part in tribal life.^ The elder children, especially the
males, have to leave the house, so as not to hamper by
their embarrassing presence the sexual life of their par-
ents. This partial disintegration of the family group is
effected by the boy moving to a house tenanted by bach-
elors or by elderly widowed male relatives or friends.
Such a house is called hukumatula^ and in the next section
we shall become acquainted with the details of its arrange-

1 Cf. ch. xiii, 6, and ch. xiv.

LIFE OF ADOLESCENCE

ment. The girl sometimes goes to the house of an elderly
widowed maternal aunt or other relative.

As the boy or girl enters upon adolescence the nature
of his or her sexual activity becomes more serious. It
ceases to be mere child's play and assumes a prominent
place among life's interests. What was before an unstable
relation culminating in an exchange of erotic manipula-
tion or an immature sexual act becomes now an absorbing
passion, and a matter for serious endeavour. An adoles-
cent gets definitely attached to a given person, wishes to
possess her, works purposefully towards this goal, plans
to reach the fulfilment of his desires by magical and other
means, and finally rejoices in achievement. I have seen
young people of this age grow positively miserable
through ill-success in love. This stage, in fact, differs
from the one before in that personal preference has now
come into play and with it a tendency towards a greater
permanence in intrigue. The boy develops a desire to
retain the fidelity and exclusive affection of the loved
one, at least for a time. But this tendency is not asso-
ciated so far with any idea of settling down to one exclu-
sive relationship, nor do adolescents yet begin to think of
marriage. A boy or girl wishes to pass through many
more experiences j he or she still enjoys the prospect of
complete freedom and has no desire to accept obligations.
Though pleased to imagine that his partner is faithful,
the youthful lover does not feel obliged to reciprocate
this fidelity.

We have seen in the previous section that a group of
children forming a sort of small republic within the com-

PRENUPTIAL INTERCOURSE

munity is conspicuous in every village. Adolescence fur-
nishes the community with another small group, of
youths and girls. At this stage, however, though the
boys and girls are much more bound up in each other as
regards amorous interests, they but rarely mix in public
or in the daytime. The group is really broken up into
two, according to sex (pis. i8 and 193 see also pis. 59
and 61). To this division there correspond two words,
to^ulatile and nakubukwabuyay there being no one expres-
sion— such as there is to describe the younger age group,
gugwadiy children — to define the adolescent youth of
both sexes.

The natives take an evident pride in this, "the flower
of the village," as it might be called. They frequently
mention that "all the to^ulatile and nakubukwahuya
(youths and girls) of the village were there." In
speaking of some competitive game, or dance or sport,
they compare the looks or performance of their own
youths with those of some other village, and always to
the advantage of their own. This group leads a happy,
free, arcadian existence, devoted to amusement and the
pursuit of pleasure.

Its members are so far not claimed by any serious du-
ties, yet their greater physical strength and ripeness give
them more independence and a wider scope of action than
they had as children. The adolescent boys participate,
but mainly as free-lances, in garden work (see pi. 19),
in the fishing and hunting and in oversea expeditions j
they get all the excitement and pleasure, as well as some
of the prestige, yet remain free from a great deal of the

LIFE OF ADOLESCENCE

drudgery and many of the restrictions which trammel and
weigh on their elders. Many of the taboos are not yet
quite binding on them, the burden of magic has not yet
fallen on their shoulders. If they grow tired of work,
they simply stop and rest. The self-discipline of ambition
and subservience to traditional ideals, which moves all the
elder individuals and leaves them relatively little per-
sonal freedom, has not yet quite drawn these boys into
the wheels of the social machine. Girls, too, obtain a
certain amount of the enjoyment and excitement denied
to children by joining in some of the activities of their
elders, while still escaping the worst of the drudgery.

Young people of this age, besides conducting their
love affairs more seriously and intensely, widen and give
u greater variety to the setting of their amours. Both
sexes arrange picnics and excursions and thus their in-
dulgence in intercourse becomes associated with an enjoy-
ment of novel experiences and fine scenery. They also
form sexual connections outside the village community
to which they belong. Whenever there occurs in some
other locality one of the ceremonial occasions on which
custom permits of licence, thither they repair, usually in
bands either of boys or of girls, since on such occasions
opportunity of indulgence offers for one sex alone (see
ch. ix, esp. sees. 6 and 7).

It is necessary to add that the places used for love-
making differ at this stage from those of the previous
one. The small children carry on their sexual practices
surreptitiously in bush or grove as a part of their games,
using all sorts of makeshift arrangements to attain pri-

PRENUPTIAL INTERCOURSE

vacy, but the ulatile (adolescent) has either a couch d£
his own in a bachelors' house, or the use of a hut belong-
ing to one of his unmarried relatives. In a certain type
of yam-house, too, there is an empty closed-in space in
which boys sometimes arrange little "cosy-corners," af-
fording room for two. In these, they make a bed of dry
leaves and mats, and thus obtain a comfortable gargon-
nierey where they can meet and spend a happy hour or
two with their loves. Such arrangements are, of course,
necessary now that amorous intercourse has become a pas-
sion instead of a game.

But a couple will not yet regularly cohabit in a bach-
elors' house {hukumatuld) y living together and sharing
the same bed night after night. Both girl and boy prefer
to adopt more furtive and less conventionally binding
methods, to avoid lapsing into a permanent relationship
which might put unnecessary restraint upon their liberty
by becoming generally known. That is why they usually
prefer a small nest in the sokwayfa (covered yam-house),
or the temporary hospitality of a bachelors' house.

We have seen that the youthful attachments between
boys and girls at this stage have ripened out of childish
games and intimacies. All these young people have
grown up in close propinquity and with full knowledge
of each other. Such early acquaintances take fire, as it
were, under the influence of certain entertainments, where
the intoxicating influence of music and moonlight, and
the changed mood and attire of all the participants, trans-
figure the boy and girl in each other's eyes. Intimate
observation of the natives and their personal confidences

66 ,

LIFE OF ADOLESCENCE

have convinced me that extraneous stimuli of this kind
play a great part in the love affairs of the Trobrianders.
Such opportunities of mutual transformation and escape
from the monotony of everyday life are afforded not
only by the many fixed seasons of festivity and permitted
licence, but also by that monthly increase in the people's
pleasure-seeking mood which leads to many special pas-
times at the full of the moon/

Thus adolescence marks the transition between infan-
tile and playful sexualities and those serious permanent
relations which precede marriage. During this interme-
diate period love becomes passionate and yet remains free.

As time goes on, and the boys and girls grow older,
their intrigues last longer, and their mutual ties tend to
become stronger and more permanent. A personal pref-
erence as a rule develops and begins definitely to over-
shadow all other love affairs. It may be based on true
sexual passion or else on an affinity of characters. Prac-
tical considerations become involved in it, and, sooner or
later, the man thinks of stabilizing one of his liaisons by
marriage. In the ordinary course of events, every mar-
riage is preceded by a more or less protracted period of
sexual life in common. This is generally known and
spoken of, and is regarded as a public intimation of the
matrimonial projects of the pair. It serves also as a test
of the strength of their attachment and extent of their
mutual compatibility. This trial period also gives time
for the prospective bridegroom and for the woman's
family to prepare economically for the event.

1 Cf. ch. ix.

PRENUPTIAL INTERCOURSE

Two people living together as permanent lovers are
described respectively as "his woman" {la vivila) and
"her man" {la ta^u). Or else a term, also used to de-
scribe the friendship between two men, is applied to this
relationship {lubay-j with pronominal suffixes). In order
to distinguish between a passing liaison and one which is
considered preliminary to marriage, they would say of
the female concerned in the latter: "/^ vivila mokita;
imisiya yambwata yambwata^^ — "his woman truly 5 he
sleeps with her always always." In this locution the
sexual relationship between the two is denoted by the
verb "to sleep with" {imisiya)y the durative and iterative
form of masisiy to sleep. The use of this verb also em-
phasizes the lawfulness of the relation, for it is used in
talking of sexual intercourse between husband and wife,
or of such relations as the speaker wishes to discuss seri-
ously and respectfully. An approximate equivalent in
English would be the verb "cohabit." The natives have
two other words in distinction to this. The verb kaylasiy
which implies an illicit element in the act, is used when
speaking of adultery or other forms of non-lawful inter-
course. Here the English word "fornicate" would come
nearest to rendering the native meaning. When the na-
tives wish to indicate the crude, physiological fact, they
use the word kayta^ translatable, though pedantically, by
the verb "copulate with."

The pre-matrimonial, lasting intrigue is based upon
and maintained by personal elements only. There is no
legal obligation on either party. They may enter into
and dissolve it as they like. In fact, this relationship dif-

THE BACHELORS' HOUSE

fers from other liaisons only in its duration and stability.
Towards the end, when marriage actually approaches, the
element of personal responsibility and obligation becomes
stronger. The two now regularly cohabit in the same
house, and a considerable degree of exclusiveness in sexual
matters is observed by them. But they have not yet
given up their personal freedom j on the several occasions
of wider licence affianced couples are invariably separated
and each partner is "unfaithful" with his or her tempo-
rary choice. Even within the village, in the normal
course, the girl who is definitely going to marry a par-
ticular boy will bestow favours on other men, though a
certain measure of decorum must be observed in this 5 if
she sleeps out too often, there will be possibly a dissolu-
tion of the tie and certainly friction and disagreement.
Neither boy nor girl may go openly and flagrantly with
other partners on an amorous expedition. Quite apart
from nocturnal cohabitation, the two are supposed to be
seen in each other's company and to make a display of
their relationship in public. Any deviation from the
exclusive liaison must be decent, that is to say, clandes-
tine. The relation of free engagement is the natural
outcome of a series of trial liaisons, and the appropriate
preliminary test of marriage.

THE bachelors' HOUSE

The most important feature of this mode of steering
towards marriage, through gradually lengthening and

PRENUPTIAL INTERCOURSE

strengthening intimacies, is an institution which might be
called "the limited bachelors' house," and which, indeed,
suggests at first sight the presence of a "group concu-
binage." It is clear that in order to enable pairs of lovers
permanently to cohabit, some building is needed which
will afford them seclusion. We have seen the makeshift
arrangements of children and the more comfortable, but
not yet permanent love-nests of adolescent boys and girls,
and it is obvious that the lasting liaisons of youth and
adult girls require some special institution, more defi-
nitely established, more physically comfortable, and at
the same time having the approval of custom.

To meet this need, tribal custom and etiquette offer
accommodation and privacy in the form of the hukuma-
tulay the bachelors' and unmarried girls' house of which
mention has already been made (see pis. 20 and 21). In
this a limited number of couples, some two, three, or
four, live for longer or shorter periods together in a
temporary community. It also and incidentally offers
shelter for younger couples if they want amorous pri-
vacy for an hour or two.

We must now give some more detailed attention to
this institution, for it is extremely important and highly
significant from many points of view. We must consider
the position of the houses in the village, their internal
arrangements and the manner in which life within the
hukufnatula shapes itself.

In the description of the typical village in the Tro-
briands (ch. i, sec. 2), attention was drawn to its schematic
division into several parts. This division expresses cer-

THE BACHELORS' HOUSE

tain sociological rules and regularities. As we have seen,
there is a vague association between the central place and
the male life of the community 5 between the street and
feminine activities. Again, all the houses of the inner
row, which consists principally of storehouses (pis. 10
and 82), are subject to certain taboos, especially to the
taboo of cooking, which is believed to be inimical to the
stored yam. The outer ring, on the other hand, consists
of household dwellings, and there cooking is allowed
(pis. 4 and 5). With this distinction is associated the
fact that all the establishments of married people have
to stand in the outer ring, whereas a bachelor's house may
be allowed among the storehouses in the middle. The
inner row thus consists of yam-houses {hwayma)^ per-
sonal huts of a chief and his kinsmen {Usiga) (pi. i), and
bachelors' houses {hukumatuld) , The outer ring is made
up of matrimonial homes {bulaviyaka)^ closed yam-houses
{sokwaypa^j and widows' or widowers' houses {hwala
nakaka^u). The main distinction between the two rings
is the taboo on cooking. A young chief's I'lsiga (personal
hut) is as a rule used also to accommodate other youths
and thus becomes a hukumatula with all that this implies
(pi. 20).

At present there are five bachelors' establishments in
Omarakana, and four in the adjoining village of Kasana'i.
Their number has greatly diminished owing to missionary
influence. Indeed, for fear of being singled out, admon-
ished and preached at, the owners of some hukumatula
now erect them in the outer ring, where they are less
conspicuous. Some ten years ago my informants could

PRENUPTIAL INTERCOURSE

count as many as fifteen bachelors' homes in both villages,
and my oldest acquaintances remember the time when
there were some thirty. This dwindling in number is
due, of course, partly to the enormous decrease of popu-
lation, and only partly to the fact that nowadays some
bachelors live with their parents, some in widowers'
houses, and some in the missionary compounds. But
whatever the reason, it is needless to say that this state
of affairs does not enhance true sex morality.

The internal arrangements of a bukumatula are simple.
The furniture consists almost exclusively of bunks with
mat coverings. Since the inmates lead their life in asso-
ciation with other households in the day-time, and keep
all their working implements in other houses, the inside
of a typical bukiunatula is strikingly bare. It lacks the
feminine touch, the impression of being really inhabited.

In such an interior the older boys and their temporary
mistresses live together. Each male owns his own bunk
and regularly uses it. When a couple dissolve their
liaison, it is the girl who moves, as a rule, to find another
sleeping-place with another sweetheart. The bukumatula
is, usually, owned by the group of boys who inhabit it,
one of them, the eldest, being its titular owner. I was
told that sometimes a man would build a house as a
bukumatula for his daughter, and that in olden days
there used to be unmarried people's houses owned and
tenanted by girls. I never met, however, any actual
instance of such an arrangement.

At first sight, as I have said, the institution of the
bukumatula might appear as a sort of "Group Marriage"

THE BACHELORS' HOUSE

or at least "Group Concubinage," but analysis shows it
to be nothing of the kind. Such wholesale terms are
always misleading, if we allow them to carry an extrane-
ous implication. To call this institution "Group Concu-
binage" would lead to misunderstanding 5 for it must be
remembered that we have to deal with a number of cou-
ples who sleep in a common house, each in an exclusive
liaison, and not with a group of people all living promis-
cuously together j there is never an exchange of partners,
nor any poaching nor "complaisance." In fact, a special
code of honour is observed within the bukumatula^ which
makes an inmate much more careful to respect sexual
rights within the house than outside it. The word kaylasiy
indicating sexual trespass, would be used of one who of-
fended against this code 3 and I was told that "a man
should not do it, because it is very bad, like adultery with
a friend's wife."

Within the hukumatula a strict decorum obtains. The
inmates never indulge in orgiastic pastimes, and it is con-
sidered bad form to watch another couple during their
love-making. I was told by my young friends that the
rule is either to wait till all the others are asleep, or else
for all the pairs of a house to undertake to pay no atten-
tion to the rest. I could find no trace of any "voyeur"
interest taken by the average boy, nor any tendency to
exhibitionism. Indeed, when I was discussing the posi-
tions and technique of the sexual act, the statement was
volunteered that there are specially unobtrusive ways of
doing it "so as not to wake up the other people in the
hukumatulaP

PRENUPTIAL INTERCOURSE

Of course, two lovers living together in a hukumatula
are not bound to each other by any ties valid in tribal
law or imposed by custom. They forgather under the
spell of personal attraction, are kept together by sexual
passion or personal attachment, and part at will. The
fact that in due course a permanent liaison often develops
out of a temporary one and ends in marriage is due to a
complexity of causes, which we shall consider later j but
even such a gradually strengthening liaison is not bind-
ing until marriage is contracted. Bukumatula relation-
ships, as such, impose no legal tie.

Another important point is that the pair's community
of interest is limited to the sexual relation only. The
couple share a bed and nothing else. In the case of a per-
manent liaison about to lead to marriage, they share it
regularly 3 but they never have meals together 3 there are
no services to be mutually rendered, they have no obli-
gation to help each other in any way, there is, in short,
nothing which would constitute a common menage. Only
seldom can a girl be seen in front of a bachelors' house
as in plate 21, and this as a rule means that she is very
much at home there, that there has been a liaison of
long standing and that the two are going to be married
soon. This must be clearly realized, since such words as
"liaison" and "concubinage," in the European use, usually
imply a community of household goods and interests. In
the French language, the expression vrure en menage^
describing typical concubinage, implies a shared domestic
economy, and other phases of life in common, besides sex.
In Kiriwina this phrase could not be correctly applied to
a couple living together in the hukumatula.

THE BACHELORS' HOUSE

In the Trobriands two people about to be married must
never have a meal in common. Such an act would greatly
shock the moral susceptibility of a native, as well as his
sense of propriety. To take a girl out to dinner without
having previously married her — a thing permitted in Eu-
rope— ^would be to disgrace her in the eyes of a Tro-
briander. We object to an unmarried girl sharing a man's
bed — the Trobriander would object just as strongly to
her sharing his meal. The boys never eat within, or in
front of, the bukumatulay but always join their parents
or other relatives at every meal.

The institution of the hukumatula is, therefore, char-
acterized by: (i) individual appropriation, the partners
of each couple belonging exclusively to one another j
(2) strict decorum and absence of any orgiastic or las-
civious display 5 (3) the lack of any legally binding ele-
ment 5 (4) the exclusion of any other community of in-
terest between a pair, save that of sexual cohabitation.

Having described the liaisons which lead directly to
marriage, we end our survey of the various stages of
sexual life previous to wedlock. But we have not ex-
hausted the subject — ^we have simply traced the normal
course of sexuality and that in its main outlines only.
We have yet to consider those licensed orgies to which
reference has already been made, to go more deeply into
the technique and psychology of love-making, to examine
certain sexual taboos, and to glance at erotic myth and
folk-lore. But before we deal with these subjects, it
will be best to carry our descriptive narrative to its logical
conclusion — marriage.

CHAPTER IV

THE AVENUES TO MARRIAGE

The institution of marriage in the Trobriands, which is
the theme of this and the following chapter, does not
present on its surface any of those sensational features
which would endear it to the "survival" monger, the
"origin" hunter, and the dealer in "culture contacts."
The natives of our Archipelago order their marriages as
simply and sensibly as if they were modern European
agnostics, without fuss, or ceremony, or waste of time
and substance. The matrimonial knot, once tied, is firm
and exclusive, at least in the ideal of tribal law, morality,
and custom. As usual, however, ordinary human frailties
play some havoc with the ideal. The Trobriand mar-
riage customs again are sadly lacking in any such interest-
ing relaxations as jus frlnue noctisy wife lending, wife
exchange, or obligatory prostitution. The personal rela-
tions between the two partners, while most illuminating
as an example of the matrilineal type of marriage, do not
present any of those "savage" features, so lurid, and at
the same time so attractive to the antiquarian.

If, however, we dig beneath the surface and lay bare
the deeper aspects of this institution, we shall find our-
selves face to face with certain facts of considerable im-
portance and of a somewhat unusual type. We shall see
that marriage imposes a permanent economic obligation

MOTIVES FOR MARRYING

on the members of the wife's family: for they have to
contribute substantially towards the maintenance of the
new household. Instead of having to buy his wife, the
man receives a dowry, often relatively as tempting as
that of a modern European or American heiress. This
fact makes marriage among the Trobrianders a pivot in
the constitution of tribal power, and in the whole eco-
nomic system 3 a pivot, indeed, in almost every institution.
Moreover, as far as our ethnological records go, it sets
aside their marriage customs as unique among those of
savage communities.

Another feature of Trobriand marriage which is of
supreme importance to the sociologist is the custom of
infant betrothal. This is associated with cross-cousin
marriage, and will be seen to have interesting implica-
tions and consequences.

MOTIVES FOR MARRYING

The gradual strengthening of the bonds between two
partners in a liaison, and the tendency to marry displayed
at a certain stage of their mutual life in the bukumatula,
have already been described in the foregoing chapter.
We have seen how a couple who have lived together for
a time and found that they want to marry, as it were
advertise this fact by sleeping together regularly, by
showing themselves together in public, and by remaining
with each other for long periods at a time.

Now this gradual ripening of the desire for marriage

THE AVENUES TO MARRIAGE

requires a more minute consideration than we have yet
given it, especially as it is one of those general, seemingly
obvious questions which do not challenge attention. Yet,
if in a closer sociological study we try to place it in its
proper perspective, and to bring it into harmony with
other features of native life, a real problem at once be-
comes evident. To us marriage appears as the final ex-
pression of love and the desire for union j but in this case
we have to ask ourselves why, in a society where mar-
riage adds nothing to sexual freedom, and, indeed, takes
a great deal away from it, where two lovers can possess
each other as long as they like without legal obligation,
they still wish to be bound in marriage. And this is a
question to which the answer is by no means obvious.

That there is a clear and spontaneous desire for mar-
riage, and that there is a customary pressure towards it,
are two separate facts about which there can be not the
slightest doubt. For the first there are the unambiguous
statements of individuals — ^that they married because they
liked the idea of a life-long bond to that particular per-
son— and for the second, the expression of public opinion,
that certain people are well suited to each other and
should therefore marry.

I came across a number of cases in which I could ob-
serve this desire for marriage developing over a prolonged
period. When I came to Omarakana, I found several
couples engaged to be married. The second youngest
brother of Namwana Guya'u, Kalogusa (pi. 22), had
been previously engaged to Dabugera, a girl of the
highest rank, his father's sister's daughter's daughter (i.e.

MOTIVES FOR MARRYING

the matrilineal grand-niece of To'uluwa, the present
chief and father of Kalogusa, see below, sec. 5). Dur-
ing a particular absence of her betrothed, which lasted
for a year, the girl married another man. On his return,
Kalogusa consoled himself by upsetting the engagement
of his elder brother, Yobukwa'u, and taking the latter's
betrothed, Isepuna, for himself. These two, Kalogusa
and Isepuna were very fond of each other; they were
always together, and the boy was very jealous. The
elder brother did not take his loss very seriously; he
started a liaison with another girl, rather plain, lazy,
trained in a Mission, and altogether unsatisfactory. Both
brothers married their fiancees a few months after I be-
came acquainted with them (see pi. 4, where Kalogusa
is seen standing near the hut and Yobukwa'u in the centre,
each behind his wife).

Another man, Ulo Kadala, one of the less privileged
sons of the chief, was deeply enamoured of a girl whose
people, however, did not approve of the match. When
I returned again after two years, these two were still not
married, and I had an opportunity of witnessing the
man's culminating failure to bring about the wedding.
I often received confidences from boys longing to marry
and faced by some obstacle. Some of them hoped to
obtain material help from me, others to be backed by the
white man's authority. It was clear that, in all such
cases, the pair were already living sexually with each
other, but that the thing which they specially desired
was marriage. A great friend of mine, Monakewo, had
a long and lasting intrigue with Dabugera, the niece of

THE AVENUES TO MARRIAGE

To'uluwa just mentioned, who by that time had divorced
her first husband. He knew that he would never be able
to marry her, for her rank was too high for him, and he
was genuinely unhappy on this account.

Such instances show clearly that young people want to
marry, even when they already possess each other sex-
ually, and that the state of marriage has real charm for
them. But before I could entirely understand all the
reasons and motives for this desire, I had to grasp the
complexities and deeper aspects of the institution, and its
relation to other elements in the social system.

The first thing to be realized is that the Trobriander
has no full status in social life until he is married. As
we saw in the table of age designations, the current term
for a man in the prime of life is tovavaygile (married
man). A bachelor has no household of his own, and is
debarred from many privileges. There are, in fact, no
unmarried men of mature age, except idiots, incurable
invalids, old widowers and albinos. Several men were
widowed during my stay in the Islands, and others were
deserted by their wives. The former remarried almost
as soon as their mourning was over, the latter as soon as
their attempts at reconciliation had proved fruitless.

The same applies to women. Provided she is at all
sexually tolerable, a widow or divorcee will not have long
to wait. Once released from mourning, a widow again
becomes marriageable. She may sometimes delay a lit-
tle, in order to enjoy the sexual freedom of her unmar-
ried state, but such conduct will ultimately draw on her
the censure of public opinion, and a growing reputation

MOTIVES FOR MARRYING

for "immorality" — ^that is disregard of tribal usage — ^will
force her to choose a new mate.

Another very important reason for marriage, from the
man's point of view, is economic advantage. Marriage
brings with it a considerable yearly tribute in staple food,
given to the husband by the wife's family. This obliga-
tion is perhaps the most important factor in the whole
social mechanism of Trobriand society. On it, through
the institution of rank and through his privilege of po-
lygamy, rests the authority of the chief, and his power
to finance all ceremonial enterprises and festivities. Thus
a man, especially if he be of rank and importance, is com-
pelled to marry, for, apart from the fact that his eco-
nomic position is strengthened by the income received
from his wife's family, he obtains his full social status
only by entering the group of tovavaygile.

There is, further, the natural inclination of a man past
his first youth to have a house and a household of his
own. The services rendered by a woman to her husband
are naturally attractive to a man of such an agej his
craving for domesticity has developed, while his desire
for change and amorous adventure has died down.
Moreover, a household means children, and the Tro-
briander has a natural longing for these. Although not
considered of his own body nor as continuing his line,
they yet give him that tender companionship for which,
when he reaches twenty-five or thirty, he begins to crave.
He has become used, it should be remembered, to play-
ing with his sister's children and with those of other rela-
tives or neighbours.

THE AVENUES TO MARRIAGE

These are the reasons — social, economic, practical and
sentimental — which urge a man towards marriage. And
last, though not least, personal devotion to a woman and
the promise of prolonged companionship with one to
whom he is attached, and with whom he has sexually
lived, prompt him to make certain of her by means of a
permanent tie, which shall be binding under tribal law.

The woman, who has no economic inducement to
marry, and who gains less in comfort and social status
than the man, is mainly influenced by personal affection
and the desire to have children in wedlock.

This personal motive comes out very strongly in the
course of love affairs which do not run smoothly, and
brings us from the reasons for marriage in general to the
motives which govern the individual's particular choice.

In this matter it must ifirst be realized that the choice
is limited from the outset. A number of girls are ex-
cluded completely from a man's matrimonial horizon,
namely those who belong to the same totemic class (see
ch. xiii, sec. 5). Furthermore, there are certain endoga-
mous restrictions, though these are by no means so pre-
cisely defined as those imposed by exogamy. Endogamy
enjoins marriage within the same political area, that is
within some ten to twelve villages of the same district.
The rigidity of this rule depends very much on the par-
ticular district. For instance, one area in the north-west
corner of the island is absolutely endogamous, for its in-
habitants are so despised by the other Islanders that the
latter would not dream either of marrying or of having
sexual relations within it. Again, the members of the

MOTIVES FOR MARRYING

most aristocratic province of Kiriwina seldom marry out-
side their own district, except into the neighbouring island
of Kitava, or into certain eminent families from one or
two outside villages (see also ch. xiii, sec. 5).

Even within this limited geographical area, there are
further restrictions on the choice of a mate, and these are
due to rank. Thus, members of the highest sub-clan,
the Tabalu, and more especially their women, would not
marry into a sub-clan of very low caste, and a certain
correspondence in nobility is considered desirable even in
marriage between less important people.

It follows that choice must be made from among per-
sons who are not of the same clan, who are not widely
different in rank, who reside within the convenient geo-
graphical area, and who are of a suitable age. In this
limited field, however, there is still sufficient freedom of
selection to allow of manages d^atnour^ de raison, et de
convenance; and, as with Kalogusa and Isepuna of whom
I have spoken, individual preference and love are often
the determining factors of choice. And many other mar-
ried couples, whom I knew well personally, had been
governed in their choice by the same motive. This could
be gathered from their history, and from the happy,
harmonious tone of their common life.

There are also fnariages de convenance^ where wealth,
that is the quantity of yams which a girl's family can pro-
vide, or pedigree, or status has determined the choice.
Such considerations have, of course, a special importance
in marriage by infant betrothal, of which we shall speak
presently.

THE AVENUES TO MARRIAGE

THE CONSENT OF THE WIFE's FAMILY

Permanent liaisons which are on the point of ripening
into marriage become known and are talked about in the
village, and now the girl's family, who, so far, have taken
no interest in her love aflFairs, who have, indeed, kept
ostentatiously aloof, must face the fact about to be ac-
complished, and make up their minds whether or no they
will approve it. The man's family, on the other hand,
need show little interest in a matter in which they have
practically no say. A man is almost entirely independent
with regard to matrimony, and his marriage, which will
be a matter of constant and considerable effort and worry
to his wife's family, will continue to lie completely out-
side the sphere of his own people's concerns.

It is remarkable that, of all the girl's family, the per-
son who has most to say about her marriage, although
legally he is not reckoned as her kinsman (veyola)^ is her
father. I was astonished when this information was
given to me early in the course of my field work, but it
was fully confirmed later on by observation. This para-
doxical state of affairs becomes less incomprehensible,
however, if we bring it into relation with certain rules of
morals and etiquette, and with the economic aspect of
marriage. One would naturally expect a girl's brothers
and maternal kinsmen to take the most important part in
deliberations concerning her marriage, but the strict taboo
which rules that the brother must have nothing at all to

CONSENT OF WIFE'S FAMILY

do with the love affairs of his sister, and her other ma-
ternal kinsmen but little, debars them from any control
over her matrimonial plans.

Thus, although her mother's brother is her legal
guardian, and her own brothers will in the future oc-
cupy the same position with regard to her own household,
they must all remain passive until the marriage is an
accomplished fact. The father, say the natives, acts in
this matter as the spokesman of the mother, who is the
proper person to deliberate upon her daughter's love in-
trigues and marriage. It will also be seen that the father
is closely concerned in the work of his sons from the eco-
nomic standpoint, and that, after the marriage of their
sister, these will have to divide the fruits of their labour
between her and their mother, instead of, as previously,
giving them all to the parental household. When two
lovers have decided on marriage, the young man becomes
assiduous in his attentions to his sweetheart's family, and
perhaps her father will, on his own initiative, say: "You
sleep with my child: very well, marry her." As a matter
of fact, if the family are well disposed to the youth, they
will always take this initiative either by such a direct dec-
laration or else by asking him for small gifts, an equally
unambiguous indication that he is accepted.

When the family are definitely opposed to the match
and give no sign of goodwill, the boy may take the ini-
tiative and plead on his own behalf. If he is refused it
may be either because he is of too low a rank, or because
he is notoriously lazy, and would be too great a drag on
his future relatives-in-law, or else because the girl is in-

THE AVENUES TO MARRIAGE

tended for someone else. After such a refusal, the pair
may relinquish their plans, or, if they are strong enough
to fight the matter out, they may try to bring about their
marriage in the teeth of opposition. If they decide to do
this, the bride stays in her lover's house (that is, in his
parents' house), as if she were really married, and the
news is spread abroad that the man is attempting to wed
her in spite of her people. Sometimes the two actually
elope and go to another village in the hope of impressing
and mortifying their hard-hearted opponents. In any
case, they stay indoors all day, and do not eat any food
to see if this will soften the hearts of her family. This
abstention from the common meal, which, as we know,
constitutes a definite declaration of marriage, shows that
they are still waiting for her family's consent.

In the meantime, the boy's father or maternal uncle
may go as an ambassador to the girl's family and offer
them a gift of high value to melt their resistance. Under
this combined pressure the latter may give in, and send
the customary present to the young couple. If, on the
other hand, they do not relent, they repair in great num-
bers to the spot where the girl stays with the youth and
"pull her back," a customary and technical expression, but
one which also indicates what actually occurs. The boy's
relatives and friends may possibly oppose the "pulling
back," and then a scuffle will ensue. But the girl's people
always have the whip hand, for, as long as they withhold
their consent, nobody can force them to supply the pair
with food, and without this the household is soon dis-
solved in the natural course.

CONSENT OF WIFE'S FAMILY

A few examples of such abortive marriage occurred in
my own experience. Mekala'i, a boy whom I often used
as a temporary servant, became enamoured of Bodulela,
a really attractive young girl, and the step-daughter of the
headman of Kabululo, who, as was well known in the vil-
lage, lived incestuously with her (see ch. xiii, sec. 6).
Mekala'i made an heroic attempt to abduct and retain her
in his parents' house in Kasana'i, but he had no wealthy
relatives or powerful friends to back him up. On the
first afternoon of their joint life, the headman of Kabu-
lulo simply walked over to Kasana'i, took his abashed and
truant step-daughter by the hand, and led her back to his
own house j that was the end.

Another and a more complicated case was that of Ulo
Kadala, who was mentioned in the last section. He
wooed a girl during my first stay in Omarakana and was
refused by her parents. The couple attempted to settle
down to married life, but the family pulled the girl back
by force. Ulo Kadala still continued his faithful court-
ship. On my second visit to Omarakana two years later,
the girl came to the village once more and took up her
abode in the house of Isupwana, the adoptive mother of
Ulo Kadala, a stone's throw from my tent. This second
attempt at marriage lasted, I think, for a day or two,
while To'uluwa was making some not very energetic ef-
forts towards reconciliation. One afternoon the parents
arrived from the neighbouring village, and laid hold of
the girl and unceremoniously carried her away. The pro-
cession passed in front of my tent, the wailing girl led by
her father and followed by vociferous partisans, wha

THE AVENUES TO MARRIAGE

hurled abuse at each other. The girPs people said quite
explicitly what they thought of Ulo Kadala, of his lazi-
ness, his incapacity for doing anything properly, and his
well-known greed. "We do not want you, we shall not
give her any food." This argument clinched the refusal,
and that was the last attempt which the two young peo-
ple made.

When the parents are well disposed and signify their
pleasure in the match by asking the intended for a small
present, the engaged couple must still wait for a little in
order to give necessary time for the preparations. But
one day the girl instead of returning in the morning to
her parents' house, will remain with her husband, take
her meals in the house of his parents and accompany him
throughout the day. The word goes round: "Isepuna is
already married to Kalogusa." Such proceedings consti-
tute the act of marriage. There is no other rite, no other
ceremony to mark the beginnings of wedlock. From the
morning on which she has remained with the bridegroom,
the girl is married to him, provided, of course, the con-
sent of the parents has been given. Without this, as we
have seen, the act constitutes only an attempt at marriage.
Though utterly simple, this act of remaining with the
man, of openly sharing a meal with him, and of staying
under his roof, has a legally binding force. It is the con-
ventional public declaration of marriage. It has serious
consequences, for it changes the life of the two concerned,
and it imposes considerable obligations on the girl's fam-
ily, obligations associated in turn with counter-obligations
on the part of the bridegroom.

MARRIAGE GIFTS
3

MARRIAGE GIFTS

This simple declaration of marriage is followed by
that exchange of gifts which is so typical of any social
transaction in the Trobriands. Each gift is definite in
nature and quantity, each has to take its proper place in
a series and each is reciprocated by some corresponding
contribution. The subjoined table will help to make
clear the description which follows it:

Marriage Gifts

!i. Katuvila — cooked yams, brought in baskets by the girl's
parents to the boy's family.
3. Pepe'i — several baskets of uncooked yams, one given by
each of the girl's relatives to the boy's parents.
3. Kaykaboma — cooked vegetables, each member of the girl's
family bringing one platter to the boy's house.
/4. Mapula Kaykaboma — repayment of gift (3), given in
,, j exactly the same form and material by the boy's rela-

■p__p < tives to the girl's family.

I 5. Takivalela Pepe'i — valuables given by the boy's father in
^ repayment of gift (2) to the girl's father.

TTT ( ^' ^^^^^^f^^ — ^ large quantity of yam-food offered at the

^ g ■< first harvest after the marriage to the boy by the girl's

( family.

(7. Saykivala — gift of fish brought by the boy to his wife's

IV ) father in repayment of (6).

B — G \ 8. Takivalela Filakuria — a gift of valuables handed by the

(^ boy's father to the girl's father in payment of (6).

G — ^B (girl to boy), gifts from the girl's family; B — G, return gifts from
the boy's relatives to the girl's.

The girl's family have to make the first offering to
signify their consent to the marriage. Since their agree-
ment is absolutely essential, this gift, in conjunction with
the public declaration of the union of the partners, con-

THE AVENUES TO MARRIAGE

stitutes marriage. It is a small gift, a little cooked food
brought in baskets and offered by the girl's father to the
boy's parents. It is set down in front of their house with
the words kam katuvila, "thy katuvila gift." It must be
given on the day on which the two remain together, or
on the morning of the next day. As we have seen, when
the consent of the girl's family is doubtful the two part-
ners often abstain from food till this gift is brought.

Soon afterwards, usually on the same day, the girl's
relatives bring a bigger present. Her father, her ma-
ternal uncle, and her brothers who now for the first time
emerge from the inaction imposed on them by the spe-
cific brother-sister taboo, each bring a basket of uncooked
yam food, and offer it to the boy's parents. This gift is
called fefe^i. But even this is not enough. A third of-
fering of food is brought to the boy's parents, cooked this
time and carried on large platters, such as can be seen on
plates 4 and 5. This gift is called kaykaboma}

The boy's family must not delay long before they re-
ciprocate. The last gift, cooked food on trays, is returned
almost immediately and in exactly the same form as it
was received. A more important gift follows. The boy's
father has already prepared certain valuables of the
vaygu^a type, that is to say, large, polished axe-blades of
green stone, necklaces of polished spondylus shell discs,
and armlets made of the conus shelly also, when the sec-

1 The reader who has grasped the complex psychology of ceremonial
gifts in the kula and in associated activities will understand the great
importance of the exchanges which accompany so many social transac-
tions in the Trobriands. Cf. Argonauts of the Western Pacific, espe-
cially chs. iii and vi.

MARRIAGE GIFTS

ond gift o£ uncooked food was brought to him by the
girPs family, he made a small distribution of it among his
own relatives, and they in turn now bring him other valu-
ables to add to his own. All these he presents to the girl's
family 3 he has kept the baskets in which the food was
brought to him 3 he puts the valuables into these, and they
are carried by himself and his family to the girl's house.
This gift is called takwalela fefe^l^ or "repayment in valu-
ables of the fefe*t gift."

The reader is perhaps weary of all these petty details,
but this meticulous absorption in small gifts and counter-
gifts is highly characteristic of the Trobrianders. They
are inclined to boast of their own gifts, with which they
are entirely satisfied, while disputing the value and even
quarrelling over what they themselves receive, but they
regard these details as most important and observe them
scrupulously. In the exchange of marriage gifts, as a
rule, they are less cantankerous than on other occasions,
and a more generous and friendly spirit prevails. After
the takwalela fefe^i there is a long pause in the exchange
of gifts, which lasts until the next harvest. During this
time and while the couple's own dwelling is being built,
the wife usually remains with her husband in his father's
house. At harvest time they will receive the first sub-
stantial gift due from the girl's family, and of this they
will themselves make a distribution by way of payment
to those who have helped in the building of their new
home.

To resume, then, the girl's family give a present of
considerable value at the next harvest, and from then on

THE AVENUES TO MARRIAGE

at every harvest they will have to help the new house-
hold with a substantial contribution of fresh yams. The
first present of this sort, however, has a special name
(vilakuria), and is surrounded by a ceremonial of its own.
Prism-shaped receptacles (pwata^i) sltq constructed of
poles, in front of the young couple's yam-house (see pis.
23 and 24), and the girPs family, after selecting a large
quantity, a hundred, two hundred, or even three hundred
basketf uls of the best yams, arrange them in these recep-
tacles with a great amount of ceremony and display.

This gift also must be repaid without any too great
delay. Fish is considered a proper counter-oflFering. In
a coastal village, the husband will embark with his friends
on a fishing expedition. If he lives inland, he has to pur-
chase the fish in one of the coastal villages, paying for
them in yams.

The fish is laid in front of the girPs parents' house,
with the words ^^Kam saykwala'^ (thy saykwala gift).
Sometimes, if the young husband is very rich, or else if
he and his family were not able previously to repay the
pepe^i present, a gift of vaygu^a (valuables) will be given
at this point in answer to the first harvest oflFering. This
is called takwalela vilakuria (repayment by valuables of
the vilakuria present), and closes the series of initial mar-
riage gifts.

This series of gifts appears at first sight unnecessarily
complicated. But, if we examine it more closely, we find
that it represents a continuous story, and is no mere dis-
connected jumble of incident. In the first place it ex-
presses the leading principle in the economic relation

MARRIAGE GIFTS

which will subsequently obtain for the whole duration
of the marriage: that the girl's family provide the newly
established household with food, being occasionally repaid
with valuables. The small initial gifts (i, 2, and 3),
express the consent of the girl's family, and are a sort of
earnest of their future and more considerable contribu-
tions. The return offering of food (4), made immedi-
ately by the boy's family, is a characteristically Trobriand
answer to a compliment. And the only really substantial
gifts from the bridegroom's family to the bride's (5, or 8,
or both) exert a definitely binding force on the husband,
for if the marriage be dissolved, he does not recover them
save in exceptional cases. They are about equivalent in
value to all the other first year's gifts put together. But
this present from the husband must emphatically not be
considered as purchase money for the bride. This idea
is utterly opposed both to the native point of view and
to the facts of the case. Marriage is meant to confer
substantial material benefits on the man. These he re-
pays at rare intervals with a gift of valuables, and it is
such a gift that he has to offer at the moment of mar-
riage. It is an anticipation of the benefits to follow, and
by no means a price paid for the bride.

It may be mentioned that not all of this series of gifts
are equally indispensable. Of the first three, only one
(either i or 2) must be given at all costs. Of the rest,
6 and 7 are never omitted, while either 5 or 8 is abso-
lutely obligatory.

It is necessary, as I have already said, to enter into
such minute details as these if we would approximate

THE AVENUES TO MARRIAGE

to the savage point of view. Closely observing the care
and anxiety with which the gifts are gathered and given,
it is possible to determine the psychology of the acts
themselves. Thus Paluwa, the father of Isepuna, worried
good-humouredly as to how he might collect sufficient
food to offer to a chief's son, his daughter's future hus-
band j and he discussed his troubles with me at length.
He was faced by the difficulty of having three daughters
and several female relatives, and only three sons. Every-
body's working power had already been taxed to provide
food for the other married daughters. And now Isepuna
was going to wed Kalogusa, a man of high rank in his
own right, and also a son of To'uluwa, the paramount
chief. All his people exerted themselves to the utmost
to produce as big a crop as possible that season, in order
to be able to give a fine vilakuria present. And To'uluwa,
the bridegroom's father, on his side, revealed to me his
own anxiety. Could he provide a worthy counter gift?
Times were hard, and yet something fine had to be given.
I inspected several of the chief's valuables, and discussed
their respective suitability with him. There was an under-
current of suggestion, in the conversation of both parties,
that some tobacco from the white man would be a much
appreciated addition to either gift.

INFANT BETROTHAL AND CROSS-COUSIN MARRIAGE

There is another way of arranging marriages in the
Trobriands beside the ordinary method of courtship, and

CROSS-COUSIN MARRIAGE

in many respects the two are in sharp contrast to each
other. Normal marriage is brought about by free choice,
by trialj and by the gradual strengthening of bonds which
assume a legal obligation only after marriage. In mar-
riage by infant betrothal, a binding agreement is made by
the parents in the children's infancy 5 the boy and girl
grow up into the relationship, and find themselves bound
to each other before they have had an opportunity to
choose for themselves.

The great importance of this second type of marriage
lies in the fact that infant betrothal is always associated
with cross-cousin marriage. The two people who, accord-
ing to native ideas, are most suited for marriage with
each other — a man's son and the daughter of his sister —
are betrothed in infancy. When the father's sister's
daughter is too old to be betrothed to her male infant
cousin, her daughter may replace her. By the native
legal system the two are equivalent, for the purposes of
this marriage.

The significance of this institution can be understood
only if we return to a consideration of the compromise
between father-love and matriliny.^ Cross-cousin mar-
riage is an arrangement whereby both tribal law, which
enjoins matrilineal succession, and the promptings of
paternal love, which incline the father to bestow all pos-
sible privileges on his son, find equitable adjustment and
adequate satisfaction.

Let us take a concrete instance. A chief, a village
headman — or, indeed, any man of rank, wealth, and

^ Cf. also Crime and Custom^

THE AVENUES TO MARRIAGE

power, will give to a favourite son all that he can safely
alienate from his heirs j some plots in the village lands,
privileges in fishing and hunting, some of the hereditary-
magic, a position in the kula exchange, a privileged place
in the canoe and precedence in dancing. Often the son
becomes in some sort his father's lieutenant, performing
magic instead of him, leading the men in tribal council,
and displaying his personal charm and influence on all
those occasions when a man may win the much-coveted
butura (renown). As examples of this tendency, which I
have found in every community where there was a chief of
outstanding influence, we may take the arrogant Namwana
Guya'u, before his banishment the leading figure in the
village life of Omarakana (see ch. i, sec. 2). Again, in
the sister village of Kasana'i, the chief's son Kayla'i, a
modest and good-natured fellow, wielded the power of
thunder and sunshine in virtue of the supreme system of
weather-magic which his father had imparted to him.
And the coastal villages of Kavataria, Sinaketa, Tuk-
wa'ukwa, each had its leader in a son of the chief. But
such privileged positions are invidious and insecure, even
while they last, as the rightful heirs and owners in
matriliny resent being pushed aside during the lifetime
of the chief 5 and, in any case, all such benefits cease with
the father's death. There is only one way by which the
chief can establish his son permanently in the village with
rights of full citizenship for himself and his progeny, and
secure possession of all the gifts until death j and that
is by contracting the son in paternal cross-cousin marriage,
marriage with his sister's daughter or with this daughter's

CROSS-COUSIN MARRIAGE

daughter. The following diagram will help to make the
genealogy of the relation clear.

Diagrammatic Genealogy of Cross-Cousin Marriage

Chief $ = == $ Chief's sister

$ Chief's daughter Chief's son ^ = $ Chief's sister's $ Chief sister's
I daughter I son and his

: Orthodox cross-cousin j

i marriage j

i heir

Between these j
< two > J

marriage is not lawful

Our diagrammatical chief has a sister j and she has a
son, the chief's heir and successor, and a daughter, the
chief's niece by his sister, a girl who will continue the
aristocratic line. The husband of this girl will enjoy a
very privileged position, into which he will step on the
day of his marriage. By native law and custom he will
have a definite claim on his wife's brother or brothers
and other male relatives, who will be obliged to give him
annual tribute of food, and will be considered his ex-
officio allies, friends, and helpers. He also acquires the
right to live in the village if he choose, and to participate
in tribal affairs and in magic. It is clear, therefore, that
he will occupy practically the same position as that en-
joyed by the chief's son during his father's lifetime, and

THE AVENUES TO MARRIAGE

from which he is ousted by the rightful heir at his father's
death. This type of marriage difFers from the ordinary
one also in that the husband comes to live in his wife's
community. Cross-cousin marriage is thus matrilocal in
contradistinction to the ordinary patrilocal usage.^

The obvious and natural solution, therefore, of the
chief's difficulty is to marry his son to his niece or grand-
niece. Usually all parties benefit by the transaction. The
chief and his son get what they want 5 the chief's niece
marries the most influential man in the village, and in so
doing confirms this influence j and an alliance is established
between the son of the chief and his lawful heirs which
frustrates the potential rivalry between them. The girl's
brother cannot oppose the marriage, because of the taboo
(see ch. xiii, sec. 6) 3 nor, as it is contracted in the chief's
son's infancy, would he normally be in a position to do so.

Whenever there is a possibility of it, a cross-cousin
marriage will always be arranged, a fact which is well
illustrated in the family of To'uluwa (see the adjacent
pedigree).

When Namwana Guya'u, the eldest son of To'uluwa's
favourite and most aristocratic wife, was born, there was
no marriageable girl available for him in his father's

1 1 think that any man could settle In his wife's community if he wished.
But by doing so, he would both degrade himself and suffer disabilities.
A chief's son, however, is an exception owing to his position in the village
and his vested interests.

ALLIANCES IN CHIEF'S FAMILY

family, that is to say, among To'uluwa's maternal kins-
women. Ibo'una and Nakaykwase were, by that time,
almost marriageable and could not be affianced to a little
child, and their daughters were yet unborn. And the
pedigree shows no other female in the sub-clan of the
Tabalu, To'uluwa's matrilineal lineage. But by the time
a younger son, Kalogusa, was born to To'uluwa, his
grand-niece, Ibo'una, had a small daughter, Dabugeraj
therefore the two were betrothed. In this case the cross-
cousin marriage failed, for, as we have seen (see above,
sec. i), the girl married another man during her fiance's
absence abroad.

In the same pedigree we can take another example
from the previous generation. Purayasi, the penultimate
chief of Omarakana, had a son called Yowana, who
belonged to the same sub-clan as Namwana Guya'u.
Yowana was a man of great talent and strong personality 5
he was renowned for his mastery of several systems of
important magic which he performed for his father, and
for his skill as a gardener, sailor, and dancer. He married
Kadubulami, Purayasi's grand-niece, and lived all his life
in Omarakana in the enjoyment of his personal privileges.
He instructed his son, Bagido'u, the present heir apparent,
in all his magical and other accomplishments.

In his turn Bagido'u had a son by his first wife, but he
died in infancy. This child, soon after birth, had been
betrothed to an infant daughter of Bagido'u's youngest
sister Nakaykwase. Thus, in one small pedigree, we see
three cases of cross-cousin marriage arranged by infant
betrothal. It must be remembered, however, that this

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ALLIANCES IN CHIEF'S FAMILY

pedigree includes the noblest family of the chieftains of
Omarakana and the sub-clan Kwoynama of Osapola, both
regarded as especially suitable for entering into matri-
monial alliance.

Cross-cousin marriage is, undoubtedly, a compromise
between the two ill-adjusted principles of mother-right
and father-love^ and this is its main raison cPetre. The
natives are not, of course, capable of a consistent theo-
retical statement 5 but in their arguments and formulated
motives this explanation of the why and wherefore of the
institution is implicit, in an unmistakable though piecemeal
form. Several points of view are expressed and reasons
given by them which throw some further light on their
ideas, but all, if pushed to a conclusion, point to the same
ultimate reason for cross-cousin marriage. Sometimes,
for instance, it will be stated as a rider to the principle
of exogamy that "the marriage between brother and sister
is wrong" ("brother and sister" in the extended sense,
all people of opposite sex and of the same generation re-
lated through the mother). "To marry a tabula (cross-
cousin) is right j the true tabula (the first cross-cousin) is
the proper wife for us."

Let us make clear one more point: among all the mar-
riages possible between cousins, only one is lawful and
desirable for the Trobriander. Two young people of
opposite sex, whose mothers are sisters, are, of course,
subject to the strict sexual taboo which obtains between
brother and sister. A boy and a girl who are the children
of two brothers stand in no special relation to each other.
They may marry if they like, but there is no reason why

lOI

THE AVENUES TO MARRIAGE

they should 5 no special custom or institution is connected
with such a relationship, since in a matrilineal society it
is irrelevant. Only a boy and a girl, descendants of a
brother and sister respectively, can conclude a marriage
which is lawful and which, at the same time, stands out
from mere haphazard alliances 3 for here, as we have seen,
a man gives his own kinswoman to his son for a wife.
But an important point must here be noted: the man's son
has to marry the woman's daughter, and not the man's
daughter the woman's son. Only in the former combina-
tion do the two people call each other tabugUy a term
which implies lawfulness of sexual intercourse. The
other couple joined by a dotted line on the diagram
(sec. 4) stand in a different relation according to native
ideas of kinship (see the discussion of these kinship terms
in ch. xiii, sec. 6). A girl calls the son of her father's
sister tamagu "my father." Marriage with the real father
or with the father's brother is incestuous and strictly
tabooed. Marriage with the tama ("father"=father's
sister's son) is not incestuous, but it is viewed with dis-
favour and happens only rarely. Such a marriage offers
few inducements. A chief might like his daughter to be
married to another chief or to a man of rank in his own
family, but she would not thus acquire any specially high
or privileged position. On the other hand, as his
daughter will have to be supported by the same men who
now work for her mother, the chief's wife, he may prefer
for his own sake to marry her to a humbler and less exact-
ing person than his heir. It all depends on his relations

102

ALLIANCES IN CHIEF'S FAMILY

with his heir, which are, as we have seen, by no means so
uniformly friendly and intimate as those with his own
son.

The advantages of cross-cousin marriage were put to
me from another point of view by Bagido'u, when I asked
him why he had wanted his little son Purayasi to marry
Kabwaynaya. "I wanted a daughter-in-law who would
be my real kinswoman," he said. "I wanted, when I got
old, to have someone of my family to look after me 5 to
cook my foodj to bring me my lime-pot and lime-stick, to
pull out my grey hairs. It is bad to have a stranger to
do that. When it is someone of my own people, I am
not afraid." His fear was, of course, of sorcery. It
should be realized that since marriage is patrilocal, and
since the son, in the case of important people, often re-
mains near the father, this latter has good reasons to be
interested in his daughter-in-law. Since she is his kins-
woman there is yet another justification for his son's resi-
dence in the father's community. Thus we are brought
back to cross-cousin marriage as the reconciling compro-
mise between the claims of father-love and matriliny.
The man may have to rely, in his old age, on the atten-
tions of his son and his son's wife, but neither of them
are his real kindred unless the daughter-in-law is also his
sister's child. In spite of his personal affection for his
son, he prefers to have someone of his own veyola (ma-
ternal kindred) about him, and this can only be achieved
if the son marries the right cross-cousin, that is the father's
sister's daughter or her daughter.

103

THE AVENUES TO MARRIAGE

CEREMONIES OF INFANT BETROTHAL

Now that we have grasped the principles of cross-
cousin marriage, a brief account must be given of the
steps and ceremonies by which it is brought about. The
initiative is always taken by the brother, who, on behalf
of his son, asks his sister for the hand of her daughter in
marriage. A man has a definite right to make such a
request 5 as the natives say: "Is he not the kadala (mater-
nal uncle) of the girl? Are his sister and her child not his
real veyola (maternal kindred)? Has he not raised the
prigubu (annual harvest contribution) for the house-
hold?"

The request may be made when the son is born, if his
sister has a daughter, or perhaps a granddaughter (daugh-
ter's daughter), who will not be too old to become the
wife of the new-born infant later on. The disparity of
age should never exceed two or three years.

Or the boy's father may wait, and if within ten years
or so a girl is born to his sister, he may requisition her as
a future daughter-in-law. His sister is not allowed to
refuse his application. Soon after the preliminary agree-
ment has been concluded, the man has to take a vaygu^a
(valuable), a polished axe-blade or shell ornament, and
give it to his sister's husband, the father {tamo) of the
infant bride. "This is the katufwoyna kapo^ula for your
child," he says, and adds that it is given "so that she may

104

INFANT BETROTHAL

not sleep with men, nor make katuyausi (licentious esca-
pades), nor sleep in the hukumatula (bachelors' house).
She must sleep in her mother's house only." Shortly-
after this, three gifts of food are offered by the girl's
family to the boy's father. They are similar in nature
to the three initial gifts in ordinary marriage, and are
designated by the same names: ka-tuvilay fefe^iy and
kaykaboma.

The natives regard vayfokala (infant betrothal) as
equivalent to actual marriage. The betrothed are spoken
of as husband and wife, and thus address each other. As
in adult wedding, the three gifts are considered to con-
clude the marriage and the infant bridegroom's family
have to repay the last present by a return gift of food —
mafula kaykaboma. At the next harvest, the girl's father
brings a vilakuria (substantial contribution of yam food)
to the boy's parents. This latter fact is interesting, since
it is a reversal, on account of the anticipated marriage,
of what happens in the previous' generation. The boy's
father, who is the brother of the girl's mother, has to give
a harvest gift year by year to the girl's parents j and this
at the time of his sister's marriage he had inaugurated by
a gift of vilakuria. Now he receives on behalf of his
infant son a vilakuria gift from his sister's husband, who-
acts as the representative of his own son or sons, that is
the brother or brothers of the future bride, who later on
will annually bring substantial harvest offerings to the
household, when it becomes such. As yet, however, the
yearly urigubu (harvest gifts) do not follow the first

105

THE AVENUES TO MARRIAGE

offering of crops (the vilakuria)^ and this interval in the
exchange of gifts lasts until betrothal culminates in actual
marriage.

This concludes the preliminary exchange of gifts at
infant betrothal. Although it is called by the natives a
marriage, the de facto difference between betrothal and
marriage is recognized in the explicit statements of the
natives and in custom, for when the two grow up they
have to marry again. The bride, that is, has to go offi-
cially to the bridegroom's house, share his bed there, take
her meals with him and be publicly announced to have
married him. The initial gifts of ordinary marriage,
however (Nos. 1-4 of the table in sec. 3) are omitted on
this occasion. Only the large harvest gift (vilakuria),
and its repayment {takwalela vilakuria) are exchanged.

But before this stage is reached and the two are safely
married, a somewhat difficult course has to be steered.
Although nobody seriously expects the young people to
be chaste and faithful to each other, appearances have to
be kept up. A flagrant transgression of the obligation to
the betrothed would be resented by the offended party,
and with some exaggeration called "adultery." It is con-
sidered a great shame to the girl if her fiance openly has
a liaison with someone else, and she on her side must
not make a hukufnutula her permanent abode either in
the company of her betrothed or of anyone else j nor may
she go to other villages on those avowedly sexual expedi-
tions called katuyausi (see ch. ix, sec. 7). Both parties
to the betrothal must carry on their amours discreetly and
sub rosa. This, of course, is neither easy nor pleasant for

106

INFANT BETROTHAL

them, and they tread the strait path of superficial
decorum only under heavy pressure. The boy knows
what he has to lose, so he is as careful as he can bring
himself to be. Also, the father controls his son to some
extent, and at the same time exercises some authority over
his future daughter-in-law, through his status of maternal
uncle. A man who had betrothed his son and niece to
each other put the matter thus to me: "She is afraid that
she might die (that is, by sorcery), or that I might hit
her." And, of course, her mother is very careful and does
what she can to conceal and make light of her daughter's
delinquencies.

In spite of this, friction is common and ruptures not
unknown. One of my earliest informants was Gomaya
of Sinaketa, an enterprising, but very lazy and dishonest
man, and a great coureur de jermnes, I got his story
partly from himself, partly from gossip, and partly by
personal observation. He was betrothed to his cross-
cousin, but in spite of this, entered into a flagrant intrigue
with a good-looking girl, one Ilamweria of Wakayse, a
village near Omarakana (see ch. vii, sec. 4). Once, when
he brought this girl to Sinaketa, the kinsmen of his fiancee
wanted to kill her and she had to run away. When
Gomaya grew tired of his amour and went back to his
native village, he wished to sleep with his betrothed, but
she refused. "You always sleep with Ilamweria," she
said, "so go to her." He at once applied to a man
acquainted with love magic and asked for a spell, saying:
"I want to sleep with my wife (that is, my fiancee) j she
refuses me. I must make some magic over her." And

107

THE AVENUES TO MARRIAGE

it was only after the required rites had been performed
that she yielded. The marriage, however, was never
completed, for in the end her parents dismissed him as
a lazy good-for-nothing. The presents were not re-
turned, for this is not customary when a cross-cousin
betrothal is dissolved. We have also seen that the be-
trothal between Kalogusa and Dabugera never resulted
in marriage. But in my opinion both these failures, which
are of recent date, were largely due to the subversive in-
fluence of the white man on native custom.

In the foregoing sections we have given an account of
the various inducements to marriage and of the two
modes of contracting it. In the next chapter we shall
pass to a description of the phases of wedded life itself,
and of the sociological features of marriage as an institu-
tion.

I08

CHAPTER V

MARRIAGE

Husband and wife in the Trobriands lead their common
life in close companionship, working side by side, sharing
certain of the household duties, and spending a good deal
of their leisure with each other, for the most part in
excellent harmony and with mutual appreciation. We
have already visited a native household, while taking a
general survey of the relations between the sexes, and
have gained this impression from our preliminary inspec-
tion. With our present greater knowledge of Trobriand
sociology, and better understanding of sexual matters, we
must now reconsider the subject of the personal relations
between husband and wife.

HUSBAND AND WIFE AS COMPANIONS

We left the young couple starting their common life
in the hut of the bridegroom's parents j here they remain
until the protracted series of marriage gifts and counter-
gifts, and the redistribution of every one of these among
more distant relatives, has been completed. Only about
the time of the next harvest do they build their own
home 3 until then they have to spend a protracted "honey-

109

MARRIAGE

moon" under the parental roof. This must seem a most
unsatisfactory state of affairs to the European reader.
But he must avoid drawing too close a parallel to our
own conditions. The young people have left the pas-
sionate stages of their life together behind them in the
bukumatulay and the initial months of matrimony, on
which they now enter, are not of predominantly sexual
interest to them. Now it is the change in their social
status, and the alteration which their relations undergo,
both towards their own families and towards the other
people in the village, which mainly preoccupy them.

Although there is no definite sexual taboo at this time,
the newly wedded couple probably think less of love-
making during the stage which corresponds to our honey-
moon than they have done for a long time previously.
I have heard this statement volunteered: "We feel
ashamed in the house of our mother and father. In the
bukumatula a man has intercourse with his sweetheart
before they marry. Afterwards they sleep on the same
bunk in the parental house, but they do not take off their
garments." The young couple suffer from the embar-
rassment of new conditions. The earlier nights of
marriage are a natural period of abstinence.

When the pair move on to their own hut, they may
or may not share the same bunk 5 there seems to be no
rule in this matter. Some of my native authorities
specifically informed me that married couples always sleep
in the same bed at first, but later on they separate and
come together only for intercourse. I suspect, however,

HUSBAND AND WIFE

that this is rather a piece of cynical philosophy than a
statement of accepted usage.

It must be remembered that it is impossible to get
direct information from any man concerning his own
conjugal lifej for in this matter a very strict etiquette
has to be observed. In speaking to a husband the slightest
allusion to this must be avoided. Nor is any reference
allowed to their common sexual past, nor to the woman's
previous love adventures with other men. It would be
an unpardonable breach of etiquette were you to men-
tion, even unwittingly and in passing, the good looks of
a wife to her husband: the man would walk away and
not come near you for a long time. The Trobriander's
grossest and most unpardonable form of swearing or
insult is Kwoy um kwava (copulate with thy wife). It
leads to murder, sorcery, or suicide (see ch. xiii, sec. 4).

There is an interesting and, indeed, startling contrast
between the free and easy manner which normally obtains
between husband and wife, and their rigid propriety in
matters of sex, their restraint of any gesture which might
suggest the tender relation between them. When they
walk, they never take hands or put their arms about each
other in the way, called kayfafa^ which is permitted to
lovers and to friends of the same sex. Walking with a
married couple one day, I suggested to the man that he
might support his wife, who had a sore foot and was
limping badly. Both smiled and looked on the ground
in great embarrassment, evidently abashed by my im-
proper suggestion. Ordinarily a married couple walk
one behind the other in single file. On public and festival

III

MARRIAGE

occasions they usually separate, the wife joining a group
of other women, the husband going with the men. You
will never surprise an exchange of tender looks, loving
smiles, or amorous banter between a husband and wife in
the Trobriands.

To quote a terse statement of the case made by one of
my informants: "A man who puts his arm round his
wife on the baku (central place of the village, i.e. in
public) 5 a man who lies down beside his wife on his yam-
house platform — he is a fool. If we take hold of our
wife by the hand — ^we act as fools. If a husband and
wife catch each other's lice on the haku — that is correct"
(see pi. 25), With the possible exception of the last
point, it will be conceded that married couples in the
Trobriands push their etiquette to a point which would
seem unnaturally exaggerated and burdensome to us.

This punctilio, as we know, does not preclude good-
humoured familiarity in other respects. Husband and
wife may talk and exchange banter in public as long as
any allusion to sex is rigidly excluded. Generally speak-
ing, husband and wife remain on excellent terms, and
show a marked liking for each other's company. In
Omarakana, Oburaku, Sinaketa, and in the many other
places where I became intimately acquainted with the
domestic life of the people, I found the majority of
couples united by unwavering sexual attachment or by real
congeniality of temperament. Kalogusa and his wife, to
take an instance from among friends already mentioned,
I found as good comrades after two years of marriage
as in the days of courtship. And Kuwo'igu, the wife of

112

HUSBAND AND WIFE

my best informant and chief favourite, Tokulubakiki,
made him a good mate, for the two were well-matched
in looks, in dignity, in decency of character and in sweet-
ness of temper (see pi. 26). Mitakata and his wife
Orayayse, before their divorce, Towese'i and Ta'uyaj
Namwana Guya'u and Ibomala were all, in spite of occa-
sional differences, excellent friends and companions. Be-
tween older couples also a real affection is sometimes
found. The chief, To'uluwa, for instance, was genuinely
attached to his wife, Kadamwasila. But affection, in some
cases, is not sufficient to stand against the stress of cir-
cumstance. Thus Mitakata and Orayayse, an exemplary
couple when I first knew them in 191 5, were forced apart
by the quarrel between the husband and the wife's kins-
man, Namwana Guya'u (ch. i, sec. 2). Two of the finest
looking people whom I knew in the Trobriands, Tomeda
of Kasana'i, and his wife, Sayabiya, whom I had supposed
most tenderly attached during my first visit, were already
divorced on my return. But the existence of attachments
lasting into old age shows that conjugal affection in the
Trobriands can be real, even though perhaps it is not
always deep.

I seldom witnessed quarrels or heard bad language
among married people. If a woman is a shrew {uriweri)
and the husband not sufficiently dominated to bear the fact
meekly, or vice versa^ marriage is so easily dissolved that
there is hardly ever an unsuccessful match which survives
the first outbreak long. I can remember only two or three
households, where relations between husband and wife
were outwardly and chronically strained. Two married

113

MARRIAGE

people in Oburaku frequently indulged in lengthy-
quarrels, to such a degree that the matter became a serious
nuisance to me and disturbed my field-work. As their
hut was next door to my tent/ I could hear all their do-
mestic differences — it almost made me forget that I was
among savages and imagine myself back among civilized
people. MorovatOj a reliable informant and friend of
mine, was ordered about by his wife and badly henpecked,
and I could cite perhaps one more really unfortunate
marriage in Sinaketa. That there are fewer matches in
which the man, and not the woman, is the aggressor in the
quarrel is probably due to the fact that it is a rather more
serious loss to a man to break up a good home than it is
to a woman (see next chapter). A couple living in Liluta
used to have difficulties owing to the man's aggressive and
jealous temper. Once, when he scolded and ill-treated
his wife very brutally for making kula (ceremonial ex-
change) of aromatic wreaths of the hutia flower with
another man, she went away to her own village. I saw
an embassy of several men come from the husband to the
wife, bringing her reconciliation presents (lula). This
was the only case of wife-beating which actually occurred
during my stay in Kiriwina, and it was done in a fit of
jealousy.

ADULTERY AND SEXUAL JEALOUSY

Jealousy, with or without adequate reason, and adultery
are the two factors in tribal life which put most strain
on the marriage tie. In law, custom and public opinion,

114

ADULTERY AND JEALOUSY

sexual appropriation is exclusive. There is no lending of
wives, no exchange, no waiving of marital rights in favour
of another man. Any such breach of marital fidelity is as
severely condemned in the Trobriands as it is in Christian
principle and European lawj indeed the most puritanical
public opinion among ourselves is not more strict. Need-
less to say, however, the rules are as often and as easily
broken, circumvented, and condoned as in our own
society.

In the Trobriands the norms are strict, and though
deviations from them are frequent, they are neither open
nor, if discovered, unatonedj they are certainly never
taken as a matter of course.

For example, in October, 191 5, during one of the
chief's long absences overseas, the village of Omarakana
was put under the usual taboo. After sunset, no people
were supposed to leave their houses, no young men from
the neighbourhood were allowed to pass through, the
village was deserted save for one or two old men who
had been appointed to keep watch. Night after night,
when I was out in search of information, I found the
streets empty, the houses shut, and no lights to be seen.
The village might have been dead. Nor could I get
anyone from Omarakana or the neighbourhood to come
to my tent. One morning before I was up, a great com-
motion arose at the other end of the village, and I could
hear loud quarrelling and screaming. Startled, I hurried
to make inquiries and was able to find one or two of my
special friends in the angry, vociferating crowd, who told
me what had occurred. Tokwaylabiga, one of the less

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MARRIAGE

noble sons of To'uluwa, the chief, who had not accom-
panied his father, had left Omarakana on a visit. Re-
turning before he was expected, he was told that his wif e^
Digiyagaya, had slept in his absence with another son of
To'uluwa, Mwaydayle, and that they had that very morn-
ing gone together to the gardens, the woman taking her
water-bottles as a pretext. He ran after them and,
according to gossip, found them under compromising
conditions, though the real facts will never be known.
Tokwaylabiga, not a very bloodthirsty man, vented his
passion and revenged himself on his wife by smashing
all her water-bottles. Obviously a philosopher like M.
Bergeret, he did not want to cause any serious trouble, and
yet was not willing to suppress his injured feelings alto-
gether. The commotion which had attracted my attention
was the reception given to husband and wife on their re-
turn to the village 5 for the taboo had been broken, and
all the citizens were out taking sides with one party or the
other. The same evening I saw the outraged husband
sitting beside his wife in perfect harmony.^

Another case of adultery has been previously men-
tioned in the account of Namwana Guya'u's expulsion.
Rightly or wrongly, he suspected his father's nephew and
heir, Mitakata, of having committed adultery with his
wife, Ibomala. But he also did not push his conjugal
vindictiveness beyond bringing the case before the white
magistrate, and after he left the capital, he and his wife

1 Another case of breach of the sexual taboo imposed on the village
during the chiefs absence has been described in Argonauts of the West"
em Facile, p. 484. See also pp. 205-6 of that book.

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ADULTERY AND JEALOUSY

^ere to be seen together in his own village apparently
■on excellent terms.

There are more serious cases of conjugal infidelity on
record, however. In a small village near Omarakana,
there lived a man called Dudubile Kautala, who died in
191 6, apparently of old age, and whose funeral I at-
tended. I remember his wife, Kayawa, as a terrible old
iiag, shrivelled like a mummy and smeared all over with
grease and soot as a sign of mourning^ and I can still
feel the dreadful atmosphere pervading her little widow's
cage, where I paid her a visit soon after her bereavement.
History tells us, however, that once she was fair and
tempting, so that men were driven to suicide for her.
Molatagula, chief of a neighbouring village, was among
those who succumbed to her beauty. One day, when the
husband had gone to procure fish from a lagoon village,
the love-sick chieftain entered Kayawa's house knowing
her to be indoors — a gross breach of usage and manners.
The story runs that Kayawa lay asleep naked upon her
bed, offering a most alluring sight to the intruder, as the
natives somewhat crudely put it. He approached her and
took advantage of her sleep and helplessness, without,
says my version, still gallantly partial to the lady, any
connivance on her part. But when the husband returned,
panting under a load of fish, he found them together.
Both were undressed and there was more besides to com-
promise them. The adulterer tried to carry it off with
effrontery, and said he had only come to fetch some fire.
But the evidence was against him, and when the husband
seized an axe, the offender tore a big hole in the thatch

117

MARRIAGE

and escaped. Public opinion was unfavourable and the
villagers insulted and ridiculed Molatagula. So he took
some of the fish poison which is, as a matter of fact, the
resource of those who wish to leave a loop-hole in the
suicide forced upon them. He was, in fact, saved by
emetics, and lived in all honour and good health for some
time afterwards.

A more tragic story is that told in Omarakana about a
man called Taytapola, belonging to a generation now
passed away. He caught his wife Bulukwau'ukwa in the
very act of adultery with Molukwayawa, a man of the
same village. The adulterer succeeded in making his
escape. The husband pursued him- spear in hand, but
failing to overtake him, came back to his hut and blew the
conch shell. His maternal kinsmen {yeyold) rallied
round him 5 and they all repaired to the adversary's end
of the village, where they accused the culprit and insulted
him in front of his sub-clan. A village fight ensued, the
two principals facing each other, each supported by his
kinsmen. The offender was speared and died. In such
a case, the attack was probably concentrated on him per-
sonally, and the defence of the wrongdoer lacked the
impetus of conviction.

Kouta'uya, a chief of the compound village of Sinaketa,
went on a kula expedition to Gumasila.^ One of his
wives, Bogonela, had a lover, by name Kaukweda Guya'u.
Both men are still alive and well known to me. The
eldest wife of the absent chief, Pitaviyaka, was suspicious

1 He and his sailings are familiar to readers of Argonauts of the JVest-
em Pacific*

118

ADULTERY AND JEALOUSY

of her fairer companion and watched her. Hearing a
noise one night, she went to Bogonela's hut and found the
two lovers together. A great scandal broke out in the
village. The guilty wife was publicly harangued and
insulted by the female relatives of her husband: "You
like carnal pleasures too muchj you are too fond of male
charms." Bogonela did as the custom and ideal of per-
sonal honour dictated. In her best attire and adorned
with all her valuable ornaments, she climbed a tall coconut
palm on the central place of the village. Her little
daughter, Kaniyaviyaka, stood under the tree and cried.
Many people were assembled. She commended her child
to the care of the eldest wife and jumped from the tree.
She was killed on the spot.

There are many such stories which prove the existence
of strong passions and complex sentiments among the
natives. Thus a man of Sinaketa named Gumaluya was
married to Kutawouya, but fell in love with Ilapakuna,
and entered into a regular liaison with her. His wife
refused to cook for him or to bring him water, so he had
to receive these from a married sister. One evening, at
the time when a village is socially astir with families
sitting over their supper or gossiping round the fire,
Kutawouya made a scene in public, and her scolding rang
right through the village: "You are too fond of dissi-
pation j you are in a constant state of sexual excitement j
you never tire of copulation" j these were fragments of
her speech, retailed to me in a vividly coloured narrative.
She goaded herself into a fury, and insulted the man in
such shocking words that he also became blinded by pas-

119

MARRIAGE

sion, and seized a stick and beat her into senselessness.
Next day she committed suicide by taking the gall-bladder
of the soka fish (a species of globe-fish), a poison which
acts with lightning rapidity.

Isakapu, a fine-looking young woman, virtuous and
hard-working, was, if we are to believe the testimony of
historical gossip, quite faithful to her husband, yet wrong-
fully suspected by him. One day, returning home after
a prolonged absence, he fell into a fury of jealousy 3 he
accused and insulted her in a loud voice, and beat her
mercilessly. She wept and lamented, crying: "I am sore
all over, my head aches, my back aches, my buttocks ache.
I shall climb a tree and jump down." A day or two after
the quarrel, she adorned herself, climbed a tree and cried
aloud to her husband: "Kabwaynaka, come here. Look
at me as I see you. I never committed adultery. You
beat and insulted me without reason. Now I shall kill
myself." The husband tried to reach her in time to stop
her, but when he was half-way up the tree, she threw
herself down and thus ended her life.

For some reason Bolobesa, one of the wives of Numa-
kala, the predecessor of the present chief of Omarakana,
left her husband for a time and returned to her own vil-
lage, Yalumugwa. Her maternal uncle, Gumabudi, chief
of that village, sent her back to her husband. She refused
to go and turned back again half-way, although, I was
told, she quite intended to return to her husband ulti-
mately. Her uncle insisted, and insulted her so grossly
that she committed suicide.

In each of these cases it was open to the woman simply

120

TRIBUTE FROM WIFE^S FAMILY

to leave her husband j or, in the last quoted incident, to
return to him. In each, she was evidently prevented from
adopting this easy solution by some strong attachment, or
by amour frofre and a sense of personal honour. Death
was preferable to life in the village where she had been
dishonoured, preferable too to life in any other village.
It was unbearable to live with the man, and impossible
to live without him, a state of mind which, though it
might seem incredible among savages whose sexual life is
so easy and carnal, yet can exercise real influence on their
married life. v

THE ECONOMIC TRIBUTE FROM THE WIFE's FAMILY

We now come to the most remarkable and, one might
say, sociologically sensational feature of Trobriand mar-
riage. It is so important that I have already had to
anticipate my statement of it several times. Marriage
puts the wife's family under a permanent tributary obli-
gation to the husband, to whom they have to pay yearly
contributions for as long as the household exists. From
the moment when they signify by the first gift that they
accept the marriage, they have to produce, year after year
by their own labour, a quantity of yams for their kins-
woman's family. The size of the offering varies with the
status of both partners, but covers about half the annual
consumption in an average household.

When, after their "honeymoon" in the boy's parental
house, the couple set up for themselves, they have to erect
a yam-store as well as a dwelling-hut, and the former,

121

MARRIAGE

as we know, will stand in the inner ring facing the latter.
The yam-house has a ceremonial compartment, contained
between the beams of a square well, and into this the
annual contribution of the wife's family is regularly
stowed at harvest. At the same time the master of the
new household is himself delivering a large quantity of
yams to his own sister or female relatives. He keeps for
himself only the inferior tubers, stowed under the thatch
in the top compartment and in the inferior yam-houses,
sokfimiyfa. He also produces his own seed yams and all
other vegetables: peas, pumpkins, taro and viya.

Thus everyone keeps back a fraction of his garden-
yield for himself. The rest goes to his female relatives
and their husbands. When a boy is young, his duty is
to provide for his nearest female relative, his mother.
Later on, he has to maintain his sister when she marries j
or perhaps a maternal aunt, or a maternal aunt's daughter,
if these have no nearer male kinsmen to provide for them.

There are several types of garden, each of a different
nature and with a different name. There are the early
gardens, kaymugwa^ planted with mixed crops, which
begin to yield new food after the last year's harvest has
been exhausted. This keeps the household going until the
new, main harvest has begun. And there is the taro
garden, tafofu.. Both of these every family makes for
its own use. Then there is the main garden, kaymatay
the yield of which is chiefly devoted to the supply of the
female relatives. All that the man produces for his own
use is called by the generic term taytumwala; what he

122

TRIBUTE FROM WIFE'S FAMILY

grows for his women-folk and their husbands is called
uriguhu.

The harvest of the main gardens inaugurates a long
and elaborate series of activities, associated with the oflFer-
ing of annual gifts. The members of each household —
for digging is always done en famille — repair to their own
garden-plot within the large, communal enclosure. The
yams of the small variety, called taytUy which are by far
the most important of all native vegetables, are then dug
up by means of pointed sticks and carried to a shady
arbour {kaUmomyo) made of poles and yam vine, where
the family group sit down and carefully clean the dug-up
tubers, shaking the earth from them and shaving off the
hairs with sharpened shells. Then a selection is made.
The best yams are placed in a large conical heap in the
middle, and this is the urigubu yield (see pi. 27). The
rest are stowed away in the corners in less regular and
much smaller heaps. The main heap is constructed with
almost geometrical precision, with the best yams carefully
distributed all over its surface, for it will remain in the
little shed for some time, to be admired by people from
the village and neighbouring communities. All this part
of the work, which, as can easily be seen, has no utili-
tarian value, is done eagerly, with interest and con amorey
under the stimulus of vanity and ambition. The chief
pride of a Trobriander is to gain renown as a "master-
gardener" {tokway-bagula) . And to achieve this, he will
make great efforts and till many plots in order to produce
a considerable nunAer of heaps with a large quantity of

123

MARRIAGE

yams in each. It must also be remembered that the mar-
riage gift is the chief and most ostentatious product of
the garden work.

In about a week or a fortnight, the taytu (small yams)
are brought in from the gardens to the village. The
owner then engages a number of helpers — men, women,
and children — to carry the gift to his sister's husband,
perhaps right at the other end of the district (pi. 28).
These put on semi-festive dress (see pi. 61), paint their
faces, adorn themselves with flowers and set out in a merry
crowd J this is a time for gaiety and rejoicing. The carrier
parties walk about all over the gardens, inspect and admire
or criticize the crops. Perhaps a man, through special
luck or excess of zeal in labour, has an outstandingly good
yield, and the renown {buturd) of this has spread. Or
there may be a famous master-gardener in the village,
and his crops have to be viewed and compared with his
previous achievements. Sometimes a village community,
or several of them, agree to have a kayasa (competitive)
harvest, and all strive td the utmost to do themselves and
their community credit. The rivalry is so strong that in
old days there was seldom a kayasa harvest without a war,
or at least fights, to follow.

The gardens have a picturesque and festive appearance
at this time. The uprooted heaps of taytu vine litter the
soil with large, decorative leaves, shaped like those of
the fig or of the grape. Among them groups of people
are seated cleaning the yams and arranging them, while
gay parties of sightseers come and go through the welter
of leaves. The copper-colour of their bodies, the red and

124

TRIBUTE FROM WIFE'S FAMILY

gold of the girls' gala petticoats, the crimson of the
hibiscus, the pale yellow pandanus, and the green of the
garlands of trailing foliage, catching at limb or breast,
make up a half Bacchic, half idyllic South Sea pastoral.

After they have rested and admired the gardens, the
crowd of carriers engaged for the occasion repair to the
owner's plot. There the yams are dealt out and measured
with a standard basket. For each basketful, a small petal
is torn oflF a cycas leaf. Each tenth petal is left standing,
to mark the tithe. For a big plot, several cycas leaves
may have to be used. The carriers then proceed to the
recipient's village, men and women mixing together, with
jokes and laughter. The owner supplies them with
dainties on the road: cocoa-drinks to quench their thirst,
betel-nut as a stimulant, succulent bananas to refresh
them. The village is entered at high speedy the men run
ahead, pandanus petals streaming from their armlets, and
the women follow closely. As they come among the
houses, a collective litany is shouted, the fore-runner re-
peating a series of meaningless traditional words very
quickly at the top of his voice: ^^Bomgoyy yakakoyy
siyaloy . . ." while the whole crowd thunder back in
unison a loud and strident "Yah." Then in front of the
recipient's yam-house, they build the yams into a circular
heap, quite as fine as the one made before in the garden
(pi. 29). It is only after a few days that the next cere-
monial event takes place, when the vegetables are re-
moved to the inside of the yam-house.

Returning now to the sociological and economic im-
portance of the annual marriage endowment, it has very

125

MARRIAGE

considerable effect not only on the marriage institution
itself, but on the whole economy and constitution o£ the
tribe. Looked at from the point of view of the recipient,
it is clear that every man has to guide his marital choice
according to his needs, and to his prospective wife's en-
dowment. For he will be dependent, not only on his
own industry and capacity, but also on that of his rela-
tives-in-law. A fortune-hunter will lay siege to a girl
who is the only sister of several brothers — ^the very ex-
istence of whom would at once cool the ardour of a Euro-
pean with a similar end in view. Only a man who could
face destitution with equanimity would court a girl who
had several sisters and but a single brother. As a man's
wife bears sons and they grow up, he acquires as it were
home-made relatives-in-law — for in a matrilineal society
children are naturally classed with relatives-in-law — and
their first duty is to provide for the parental household.
Ordinarily the husband receives the main part of his wife's
endowment from one relative-in-law only 5 but in the case
of a chief or a man of importance, though one man will
nominally be responsible, many others will co-operate
with him to provide a suitable gift. Even a commoner,
however, receives, besides the urigubu from his chief
donor, a number of smaller gifts named kovisi or tay-
tufeta from his wife's other relatives. They are all
presented at harvest time and consist of several baskets of
yams and other vegetables.

A man also receives from his relatives-in-law various
services, given as occasion demands. They have to assist
him when he builds a house or canoe, arranges for a

126

TRIBUTE FROM WIFE'S FAMILY

fishing expedition, or takes part in one of the public fes-
tivals. In illness, they must keep watch over him against
sorcerers, or carry him to some other place where he hopes
to get better. In feuds or in other emergencies he may,
given certain circumstances, command their services.
Finally, after his death, the bulk of mortuary duties will
fall upon them. Only from time to time has the man to
repay the annual services of his relatives-in-law by a gift
of valuables — such occasional gifts being called youlo.

The most interesting question about this institution of
annual harvest gifts, and the most difficult to under-
stand, is this: what are the legal, social, or psychological
forces which impel a man to give freely and liberally
year after year, and to strain his working power to the
utmost in so doing? The answer is: tribal custom and
personal pride. There are no definite punishments to
enforce this dutyj those who neglect it merely sink in the
public esteem and have to bear public contempt.

A Trobriander is extremely ambitious and there are
two points at which his ambition is specially sensitive.
One of them is his family pride. A man's sister is his
nearest relation, and her honour, her position and her
dignity he identifies with his own. The other point of
honour is concerned with food supply. Scarcity of food,
hunger, lack of superabundance are considered very
shameful indeed/ Thus, when it is necessary to uphold
the honour of his family by providing his sister with
food, a Trobriander, unless he is entirely devoid of de-

1 For this psychology of food honour, compare Argonauts of the West'
em Pacific, esp. ch. vi, and Crime and Custom.

127

MARRIAGE

cency and morality, works with a will. When his sister's
husband is a man of higher rank than himself, then all
the weight of the latter's prestige is added to the stimulus
of ambition 3 and if the husband is of a rank lower than
himself, then the sister's status must be the more en-
hanced. In short, the sense of what is right, the pressure
of public opinion, and inequalities of rank in either direc-
tion, produce strong psychological incentives which only
in very rare and exceptional cases fail in their effect.

From the point of view of tribal economy, this system
of annual marriage endowment introduces extraordinary
elements of complication: there is all the additional work
associated with display and ceremonial offering j there is
the sorting, cleaning, and arrangement of the heaps j there
is the building of an arbour. In addition there is the
work of transport, which is sometimes very considerable j
for a man has to make his garden in the place where he
lives and to transport the produce to his brother-in-law's
village, perhaps six or eight miles away at the other end
of the district. Sometimes, where the distance is excep-
tionally great, a few hundred basketf uls of yams have to
be carried in relays to a coastal village, transported thence
by canoe, and afterwards carried again. It is easy to see
the enormous amount of waste involved in all this. But
if a benevolent white reformer, and there are, alas, many
such at work even in the Trobriands, tried to break down
the native system, the good would be very doubtful and
the harm most certain. In general, the destruction of any
tribal custom is subversive of order and morals. And

128

TRIBUTE FROM WIFE'S FAMILY

more than this: if we examine the roundabout methods of
native economy more closely, we see that they provide a
powerful incentive to industrial efficiency. If he worked
just to satisfy his own immediate wants, and had only
the spur of directly economic considerations, the native,
who has no means of capitalizing his surplus, would have
no incentive to produce it. The deep-rooted motives of
ambition, honour, and moral duty have raised him to a
relatively high level of efficiency and organization which,
at seasons of drought and scarcity, allows him to produce
just enough to tide over the calamity.

In this extraneous economic endowment of households,
we see again the dual workings of father-right and
matriliny. The husband is only partially the head of the
household 3 he is also only partially its provider. His
wife's brother, who according to tribal law remains the
guardian of the wife and her children, has heavy economic
duties towards the household. Thus there is an economic
counterpart to the wife's brother's interference with
household affairs. Or in other words, the husband,
through his marriage, acquires an economic lien on his
male relatives-in-law, while they, in exchange for their
services, retain a legal authority over the wife and her
children. This, of course, is a formulation in abstract
terms of the state of affairs as the sociologist sees it, and
contains no hypothesis as to the relative priority in time
or importance of father-right and mother-right. Nor
does it represent the point of view of the natives, who
would be incapable of producing such an abstract formula.

129

MARRIAGE

POLYGAMY OF CHIEFS

Monogamy is so much the rule among the Trobri-
anderSj that our treatment of their marriage customs has,
so far, assumed the existence of one wife only. In a way
this is not misleading, since if a man has several wives,
all that has been said refers to each union separately.
But a few supplementary notes must be added on plurality
of wives. Polygamy (vilayawa) is allowed by custom to
people of higher rank or to those of great importance,
such as, for instance, the sorcerers of renown. In certain
cases, indeed, a man is obliged to have a great number
of wives by virtue of his position. This is so with every
chief, that is to say, every headman of high rank who
exercises an over-rule in a more or less extended district.
In order to wield his power and to fulfil the obligations
of his position, he must possess wealth, and this in
Trobriand social conditions is possible only through plu-
rality of wives.

It is a very remarkable fact in the constitution of the
tribe of which we are speaking, that the source of power
is principally economic, and that the chief is able to carry
out many of his executive functions and to claim certain
of his privileges only because he is the wealthiest man
in the community. A chief is entitled to receive tokens of
high respect, to command observance and require services 5
he can ensure the participation of his subjects in war, in
any expedition and in any festival 5 but he needs to pay

130

POLYGAMY OF CHIEFS

heavily for all these things. He has to give great feasts
and finance all enterprises by feeding the participants and
rewarding the chief actors. Power in the Trobriands is
essentially plutocratic. And a no less remarkable and
unexpected feature of this system of government is that,
although the chief needs a large revenue, there is nothing
of the sort directly attached to his office: no substantial
tributes are paid him by the inhabitants as from subject
to chief. The small annual offerings or tribute in special
dainties — ^the first fish caught, vegetable primitiae, special
nuts and fruits — are by no means a source of revenue j
in fact the chief has to repay them at full value. For his
real income he has to rely entirely on his annual marriage
contribution. This, however, in his case, is very large,
for he has many wives, and each of them is far more
richly dowered than if she had married a commoner.

A statement of the specific conditions will make matters
clearer. Each chief has a tributary district comprising
several villages — a few dozen in the case of Kiriwinaj
a dozen or so in Luba or Tilataulaj one or two in the
cases of some minor chiefs — and this district is tributary
through marriage. Each subject community renders a
considerable contribution to the chief, but only and exclu-
sively in the form of a dowry, paid annually in yams.
Each village — and in the case of a compound village each
constituent part of it — is "owned" by a sub-clan (see
ch. i, sec. 2) and ruled by the headman of that sub-clan.
From every one of these sub-clans the chief takes a wife
and she is, as it were, perpetual, since on her death another
wife, her substitute {kaymafula)^ is immediately wed to

131

MARRIAGE

him from the same sub-clan. To the dowry of this one
woman, the chosen representative of the sub-clan, all its
male members contribute their share, though the whole is
presented collectively by the headman. Thus every man
in a district works for his chief, but he works for him as
for his relative-in-law, however distant.

The headman of Omarakana, and chief of Kiriwina, is
supreme in rank, power, extent of influence and renown.
His tributary grasp, now considerably restricted by white
men and crippled by the disappearance of some villages,
used to reach all over the northern half of the island
and comprise about five dozen communities, villages, or
sub-divisions of villages, which yielded him up to sixty
wives (of whom a remnant may be seen on pi. 30). Each
of these brought him in a substantial yearly income in
yams. Her family had to fill one or two storehouses each
year (pi. 31) containing roughly five to six tons of yams.
The chief would receive from 300 to 350 tons of yams
per annum.^ The quantity which he disposes of is cer-
tainly sufiicient to provide enormous feasts, to pay crafts-
men for making precious ornaments, to finance wars and
oversea expeditions, to hire dangerous sorcerers and as-
sassins— to do all, in short, which is expected of a person
in power.

Thus wealth emphatically forms the basis of power,
though in the case of the supreme chief of Omarakana,
it is reinforced by personal prestige, by the respect due to

^ This rough computation was made for me by a trader who was en-
gaged among other things in exporting yams for the mainland plantations.
As I was unable to check it, it must be received with caution.

132

DOMESTIC ASPECT OF POLYGAMY

his tabooed or holy character, and by his possession of
the dreaded weather magic through which he can make
or mar the prosperity of the whole country. The smaller
chiefs have usually only a few villages to draw uponj the
smallest merely the other component parts of their own
settlement. In every case their power and status depend
entirely on their privilege of polygamy and on the excep-
tionally rich dowry due to a woman who marries a chief.
This account though short and necessarily incomplete
will yet be sufficient to indicate the enormous and mani-
fold influence of marriage and polygamy on the consti-
tution of power and on the whole of social organizatioa
in the Trobriands.^

THE DOMESTIC ASPECT OF POLYGAMY

Turning now to the domestic aspect of polygamy, let
us consider the steps by which a chief acquires his several
wives. It will be best to take a specific instance j that of
To'uluwa, for example. He began his sexual life in the
ordinary way, passing through the stages of complete
freedom, then of a liaison in the hukumatulay and finally
of a permanent attachment. His first choice fell on
Kadamwasila, of the clan of Lukwasisiga, the sub-clan
Kwaynama of Osapola village (see pi. 4 and diag. in ch.
iv, sec. 5). It was quite a suitable match, for this sub-

1 1 cannot enter here more deeply into the political nature of chieftain-
ship; I have treated the subject somewhat more fully elsewhere {Argo-
nauts, ch. ii, sec. v, pp. 62-70). Nor can I deal in extenso with the eco-
nomic aspect of power; this has been examined in "The Primitive Eco-
nomics of the Trobriand Islanders," Economic Journal, March, 1921.

133

MARRIAGE

clan is the very one from which a Tabalu chief ought to
choose his principal wife. The girl must have been very
good-looking, and she certainly was a "real lady," possess-
ing charm, dignity, and simple honesty. The two were
deeply attached to each other and remained soj and the
union was blessed by five boys and a girl, the youngest
child. I have called Kadamwasila "the chief's favourite
wife," meaning by that that theirs was a union of love,
a real companionship, and undoubtedly in its early years,
a passionate relation. The chief, however, even before
his accession, took to himself other wives, each from one
of the communities which have to supply him with an
annual contribution. It often happens that when a chief's
wife dies, the community from which she came supplies
the heir apparent, instead of the actual chief himself,
with a girl who counts as substitute for the deceased.
To'uluwa had become possessed of three or four wives
of this kind, when his elder brother and predecessor died.
Then he inherited the late chief's widows, who auto-
matically and immediately became his wives, while their
children became part of his household. The majority of
the widows were fairly old, some having passed through
the hands of three husbands. It seems that the chief
would not have any obligation to live sexually with such
inherited wives, but of course he could do so if he wished.
Subsequently To'uluwa married four other wives, from
such communities as were not represented among his com-
plement at the time. The marriage of a chief does not
differ from that of a commoner, except that his wife is

134

DOMESTIC ASPECT OF POLYGAMY

brought to him by her parents openly, and that the gifts
exchanged are more substantial.

At present a stop is being gradually put to the whole
system of the chief's polygamy. The first administrators,
benevolently conceited and megalomaniacally sensitive as
all those with arbitrary power over an "inferior" race are
apt to be, were not guided by any sympathetic under-
standing of native custom and institutions. They did not
grope, but proceeded at once to hit about them in the
dark. They tried to destroy such native power as they
found, instead of using it and working through it. Po-
lygamy, a practice uncongenial to a European mind and
indeed regarded by it as a sort of gross indulgence,,
seemed a weed proper for extirpation. So the chiefs, and
especially he of Omarakana, though allowed to retain
such wives as they had, were forbidden to fill the place
left by each death, as would have been done in olden
days. This prohibition was, by the way, an arbitrary act
on the part of the white Resident, since it was justified
by no law or regulation of the colony.^ Now To'uluwa's
wealth and influence are declining, and would already
have ceased to exist if it had not been for the faithful
obedience of his subjects to native custom. They were
openly encouraged to forgo payment of the annual
gifts, and the wives were invited to leave their husband j

1 1 am unable to say whether the Magistrate's taboo on polygamy was
ever embodied in a definite statement or order, or only verbally given to
the natives. But I know that chiefs and headmen have not acquired re-
cently any new wives and that they not only allege, as a reason for this,
a taboo from the white authorities, but they are genuinely afraid of
defying this taboo, and also deeply resent it.

135

MARRIAGE

but so far loyalty and tradition have prevailed. At the
death of the present chief, however, a complete disor-
ganization is sure to take place among the natives of the
Trobriands, and is certain to be followed by a gradual
disintegration of culture and extinction of the race.^

Returning to the chief's household, it is clear that his
relations with his different wives cannot be the same.
Three classes of these latter may be roughly distin-
guished.

The first of these consists of wives acquired from his
predecessor, a man much older than himself. These
should be regarded as dowager tribute-bringers, who
cannot be repudiated, and are living in dignity and retire-
ment, but hardly exercise sexual allurement. Some of
them, indeed, play an important role and enjoy a high
degree of prestige. The eldest wife of To'uluwa, Boku-
yoba (fourth from right on pi. 30), whom he inherited
from his elder brother, has, though childless, a right of
precedence in many matters, and is considered the head
of the giyovila (chief's wives) whenever, for ceremonial
or festival purposes or during private receptions, they act
as a body. Next come Bomiyototo, Bomidabobu, and
others, and there is also Namtauwa, mother of two strap-
ping fellows, sons of the last chief, who take next place
after To'uluwa's own sons. The chief has probably never
actually lived sexually with these venerable relicts of the
former regime.

The second class of wives are those whom the chief

1 Cf. the excellent analysis of such conditions in other parts of Mela-
nesia in G. Pitt-Rivers's Clash of Culture, pp. 134 sq. and passim.

136

DOMESTIC ASPECT OF POLYGAMY

married in his youth, women acquired and not inherited.
There is usually one favourite among these: Kadamwasila
filled this position in youth, and in her old age she was
highly respected and had considerable influence. This
influence was exercised directly and also indirectly through
her sons, one of whom is the banished Namwana Guya'u.

The third class consists of younger women, adopted in
exchange for such older ones as have died. Some of them
are really pretty, for the most attractive women are al-
ways chosen for the chief. The method of choice is sim-
ple j the chief simply indicates which of the girls pleases
him best, and, irrespective of her previous attachments,
she is given to him. With these younger women their
husband unquestionably has sexual intercourse, but the
same degree of intimacy and companionship as with the
wives of his youth does not, as a rule, obtain.

The latest acquisition of To'uluwa, Ilaka'ise (second
from right on pi. 30, and on pi. 31) is one of the best-
looking girls in the Trobriands. But the chief is seldom
seen in her company. Isupwana (pi. 18), the eldest of
the third class of acquisitions, really stands on the border-
line between the second and the last category. She is the
present favourite of the chief, and is often to be seen
with him in the garden, or on visits, or in front of his
personal hut. But he always used to prefer to take his
meals at the house of Kadamwasila during her life-time,
and — apart from his own personal hut — made it his home.

The outward relations of the chief's wives towards
each other are noticeably good. Nor could I discover
from indiscreet village gossip the existence of any vio-

137

MARRIAGE

lent rivalries and hatreds among them. Bokuyoba, the
oldest wife, who, as has been said, enjoyed a privileged
position among them, is undoubtedly popular and liked
by them all. She is also supposed to keep an eye on their
morals, a somewhat invidious task which always falls to
the oldest wife. It will be remembered that Pitaviyaka,
the first wife of Kouta'uya, one of the chiefs of Sinaketa,
actually discovered an act of adultery among her col-
leagues, a discovery which, as we have seen, ended so
tragically in the suicide of the guilty one. In Omarakana,
however, the first wife is less of a Mrs. Grundy.

Scandal reports many breaches of marital fidelity
among To'uluwa's wives, especially and naturally on the
part of the youngest ones. The point on which village
gossip centres its most eager and malicious interest is the
fact that several of the most prominent sons of the chief
himself are among the adulterers. Of course, this rela-
tion has not the same incestuous flavour as it would pos-
sess for us, since the bodily tie between father and son is
not recognized 5 but it is bad enough to scandalize the na-
tives, or rather to arouse their interest by its piquancy.
Ilaka'ise, the youngest wife, a girl of not more than
twenty-five and, with her tall figure, soft and well-de-
veloped contour, and shapely face, a model of Melane-
sian beauty, has a permanent intrigue with Yobukwa'u.
He is the third son of To'uluwa and Kadamwasila, and
one of the finest-looking, best-mannered, and really
most satisfactory fellows of my acquaintance. As the
reader may remember, he has recently married a girl who
is not his equal either in character or in personal charm

138

DOMESTIC ASPECT OF POLYGAMY

(see ch. iv, sec. i). His friends smiled at the suggestion
that his marriage might mean a rupture with Ilaka'ise.

Isupwana, the chief's favourite of his younger wives
and a woman who has the air of a stately yet comely
matron, is enamoured, among others, of Yabugibogi, a
young son of the chief. This youth, though good-
looking enough and endowed, according to the scandal-
mongers, with great attractions for a jaded feminine
taste, is perhaps the most obnoxious waster in the whole
community.

Namwana Guya'u, the eldest son of Kadamwasila and
his father's favourite, does not consider this fact a suffi-
cient reason for being more abstemious than his brothers.
He has chosen Bomawise for his mistress, the least at-
tractive of the few younger wives of his father. Both
before his marriage and after it, he lived in a faithful
though incestuous relation with her, which only ended
with his banishment.

The greatest scandal of all was caused by Gilayviyaka,
the second son of Kadamwasila, a fine and intelligent
native, who died soon after my first departure from the
Trobriands. Unfortunately for himself, he married a
very attractive girl, Bulubwaloga, who seems to have been
passionately fond and very jealous of him. Before his
marriage, he had an intrigue with Nabwoyuma, one of
his father's wives, and did not break it off after the wed-
ding. His wife suspected and spied upon him. One
night, the guilty couple were caught in 'flagrante delicto
in Nabwoyuma's own hut by the adulterer's wife. The
alarm was given, and a dreadful public scandal ensued.

139

MARRIAGE

The outraged wife left the village immediately. A great
social upheaval took place in Omarakana, and a perma-
nent estrangement ensued between the father and son.
For, though the chief probably knows a good deal of
what goes on and condones it, once a scandal becomes
public, custom demands the punishment of the offenders.
In olden days they would have been speared, or destroyed
by sorcery or poison. Now that the chief's power is para-
lysed, nothing so drastic can happen 5 but Gilayviyaka had
to leave the village for some time, and after his return
was always under a cloud. His wife never returned to
him. The chief's wife remained with a stain on her char-
acter, and in great disfavour with her husband.

I heard many other items of scandalous gossip which
space forbids me to retail. It is sufficient to say that the
behaviour of the eldest sons of Kadamwasila is typical.
The chief's other male children seem to have no such
permanent intrigues with special wives, but they are not
held in greater public esteem because of that, since they
are known to take any opportunity of a temporary affair
with any one of their father's wives. Nowadays, when
the law and the moral pretence of the white rule have
done much to rot away the real morality and sense of
what is right among the natives, all these inter-family
adulteries are committed much more openly and shame-
lessly. But, even in the old days, as some of my more
ancient informants told me with a reminiscent smile, the
young wives of an old chief would never suffer a sad lot
in resignation, and would always seek comfort, with dis-

140

DOMESTIC ASPECT OF POLYGAMY

cretion, but not without success. Polygamy in the Tro~
briands was never a cruel and inhuman institution.

In this chapter we have discussed marriage in its do-
mestic aspect, and in the aspect of the economic and legal
obligations which it imposes on the wife's family with
regard to the household. Finally we have discussed the
effect on public and political life which it exerts through
the fact of the chief's polygamy. In the next chapter we
shall see what light is thrown on marriage in the Tro-
briands by the modes of its dissolution through divorce
and death.

141

CHAPTER VI

DIVORCE AND THE DISSOLUTION OF
MARRIAGE BY DEATH

The nature of matrimonial bonds reveals itself in their
breaking in life by divorce, as it does also in their disso-
lution by death. In the first instance we can observe the
strain to which they are submitted j we can see where they
are strong enough to resist and where they most easily
yield. In the second we can estimate the strength of the
social ties and the depth of personal sorrow by their ex-
pression in the ceremonial of mourning and burial.

DIVORCE

Divorce, called by the natives vaypaka (yay = mar-
riage 5 faka^ from faykiy to refuse), is not infrequent.
Whenever husband and wife disagree too acutely, or
whenever bitter quarrels or fierce jealousy makes them
chafe too violently at the bond between them, this can
be dissolved — provided the emotional situation does not
lead instead to a more tragic issue (see sec. 2 of the pre-»
vious chapter). We have seen why this solution, or
rather dissolution, of the difiiculty is a weapon used by
the woman rather than the man. A husband very seldom
repudiates his wife, though in principle he is entitled to

142

DIVORCE

do so. For adultery, he has the right to kill her 5 but the
usual punishment is a thrashing, or perhaps merely re-
monstrance or a fit of the sulks. If he has any other se-
rious grievance against her, such as bad temper or laziness,
the husband, who is little hampered by marriage ties,
easily finds consolation outside his household, while he
still benefits by the marriage tribute from his wife's
relatives.

There are, on the other hand, several instances on rec-
ord of a woman leaving her husband because of ill-treat-
ment or infidelity on his part, or else because she had
become enamoured of someone else. Thus, to take a
case already described, when Bulubwaloga caught her
husband, Gilayviyaka, m flagrante delicto with his father's
wife, she left him and returned to her family (see ch. v,
sec. 5). Again, a woman married to Gomaya, the ne'er-
do-well successor to one of the petty chiefs of Sinaketa,
left him because, in his own words, she found him an
adulterer and also "very lazy." Bolobesa, the wife of the
previous chief of Omarakana, left him because she was
dissatisfied or jealous, or just tired of him (ch. v, sec. 2).
Dabugera, the grand-niece of the present chief, left her
first husband because she discovered his infidelities and
found him, moreover, not to her taste. Her mother,
Ibo'una, the chief's grand-niece, took as a second husband
one Iluwaka'i, a man of Kavataria and at that time inter-
preter to the resident magistrate. When he lost his po-
sition she abandoned him, not only, we may presume,
because he was less good-looking without his uniform, but
also because power attracts the fair sex in the Trobriands

143

DIVORCE AND DEATH

as elsewhere. These two ladies of rank display an exact-
ing taste in husbands, and indeed the fickleness of those
privileged by birth has become proverbial in the Tro-
briands: "She likes the phallus as a woman of guya^u
(chief) rank does."

But among people of lower rank, also, there are many
instances of a woman leaving her husband simply be-
cause she does not like him. During my first visit to the
Trobriands, Sayabiya, a fine-looking girl, bubbling over
with health, vitality, and temperament, was quite happily
married to Tomeda, who was a handsome, good-natured
and honest, but stupid man. When I returned, she had
.gone back to live in her village as an unmarried girl,
simply because she was tired of her husband. A very
good-looking girl of Oburaku, Bo'usari, had left two
husbands, one after the other, and, to judge from her
intrigues, was looking for a third. Neither from her,
nor from the intimate gossip of the village, could I get
any good reason for her two desertions, and it was ob-
vious that she simply wanted to be free again.

Sometimes extraneous conditions, more especially quar-
rels between the husband and the wife's family, lead to
divorce. Thus as one result of the quarrel between
Namwana Guya'u and Mitakata, Orayayse, Mitakata's
wife, had to leave her husband because she belonged to
iiis enemy's family. In a dispute between two communi-
ties, marriages are often dissolved for the same reason.

An interesting case of matrimonial misfortune which
Jed to divorce is that of Bagido'u, the heir apparent of
Omarakana (pi. 64). His first wife and her son died,

144

DIVORCE

and he then married Dakiya, an extremely attractive
woman who bore traces of her good looks even at the
somewhat mature age at which I first saw her. Dakiya's
younger sister Kamwalila was married to Manimuwa, a
renowned sorcerer of Wakayse. Kamwalila sickened, and
her sister Dakiya went to nurse her. Then between her
and her sister's husband evil things began. He made
love magic over her. Her mind was influenced, and they
committed adultery then and there. When, after her
sister's death, Dakiya returned to her husband Bagido'u,
matters were not as before. He found his food tough,
his water brackish, the coconut drinks bitter, and the betel
nut without a bite in it. He would also discover small
stones and bits of wood in his lime pot, twigs lying about
in the road where he used to pass, pieces of foreign mat-
ter in his food. He sickened and grew worse and worse,
for all these substances were, of course, vehicles of evil
magic, performed by his enemy, the sorcerer Manimuwa,
assisted in this by the faithless wife. In the meantime,
his wife trysted with her leman.

Bagido'u scolded and threatened her until one day she
ran away and went to live with Manimuwa, an altogether
irregular procedure. The power of the chiefs being now
only a shadow, Bagido'u could not use special force to
bring her back 5 so he took another wife — a broad-faced,
sluggish, and somewhat cantankerous person by the name
of Dagiribu'a. Dakiya remained with her wizard lover,
and married him. The unfortunate Bagido'u who obvi-
ously suffers from consumption, a disease with which all
his family are more or less tainted, attributes his ills to

145

DIVORCE AND DEATH

his successful rival's sorcery, even now, as he believes,
active against him. This is very galling, for he has the
injury of black magic added to the insult of his wife's
seduction. When I came back to Omarakana in 191 8, I
found my friend Bagido'u much worse. By now (1928),
this man of extraordinary intelligence, good manners,
and astounding memory, the last worthy depository of
the family tradition of the Tabalu, is no doubt dead.

The formalities of divorce are as simple as those by
which marriage is contracted. The woman leaves her
husband's house with all her personal belongings, and
moves to her mother's hut, or to that of her nearest ma-
ternal kinswoman. There she remains, awaiting the
course of events, and in the meantime enjoying full
sexual freedom. Her husband, as likely as not, will try
to get her back. He will send certain friends with
"peace offerings" {koluluvly or lula) for the wife and for
those with whom she is staying. Sometimes the gifts
are rejected at first, and then the ambassadors are sent
again and again. If the woman accepts them, she has to
return to her husband, divorce is ended and marriage re-
sumed. If she means business, and is determined not to
go back to her wedded life, the presents are never ac-
cepted j then the husband has to adjust himself as best
he may, which means that he begins to look for another
girl. The dissolution of marriage entails in no case the
restitution of any of the inaugural marriage gifts ex-
changed, unless, as we shall see, the divorced woman
should remarry.

The girl, if she is still young enough, now resumes
her prenuptial life and leads the free, untrammelled

146

DEATH AND THE BEREAVED

existence of a nakubukwabuya (unmarried girl), entering
upon liaison after liaison, and living in bachelors' houses.
jOne of the liaisons may lengthen out and develop into a
new marriage. Then the new husband must present a
valuable object {yaygu^a) to his predecessor, in recom-
pense for the one given to the wife's family at the begin-
ning of the first marriage. The new husband must also
give another vaygu^a to his wife's relatives, and he then
receives from them the first annual harvest gift — vila-
kurm — and the subsequent yearly tribute in yams. It
seemed to me that a divorcee was much more independ-
ent of family interference in choosing her new husband
than an ordinary unmarried girl. The initial gifts of
food {fefe^iy etc.) are not given in the case of such a
remarriage. There is, apparently, no social stigma on a
girl or a man who has been married and divorced, al-
though as a matter of amour frofre no one wishes to
own that he or she has been abandoned by the other.

It goes without saying that the children, in case of di-
vorce, always follow their mother 3 and this is no doubt
another reason why divorce is less popular with men than
with women. During the interim, when their mother is
living as a spinster, they remain in the household of her
nearest married maternal relative.

DEATH AND THE BEREAVED

When a man dies, his wife is not set free by the event.
It may be said without paradox that, in a way, the strictest
and heaviest shackles of marriage are laid on her after

147

DIVORCE AND DEATH

the real tie has been dissolved by death. Custom com-
pels her to play the burdensome role of chief mourner 5
to make an ostentatious, dramatic, and extremely onerous
display of grief for her husband from the moment of his
demise until months, at times years, afterwards. She has
to fulfil her part under the vigilant eyes of the public,
jealous of exact compliance with traditional morals, and
under the more suspicious surveillance of the dead man's
kindred, who regard it as a special and grievous offence
to their family's honour if she flags for a single moment
in her duty. The same applies in a smaller degree to a
widower, but in his case the mourning is less elaborate
and burdensome, and the vigilance not so relentless.

The ritual in the early stages of widowhood reveals in
a direct and intimate manner a most interesting complex
of ideas — some very crude and quaint — concerning kin-
ship, the nature of marriage, and the purely social ties
between father and children. The whole mortuary ritual
is, in fact, perhaps the most difficult and bewildering
aspect of Trobriand culture for the investigating sociolo-
gist. In the overgrowth of ceremonial, in the inextricable
maze of obligations and counter-obligations, stretching
out into a long series of ritual acts, there is to be found
a whole world of conceptions — social, moral, and mytho-
logical— the majority of which struck me as quite unex-
pected and difficult to reconcile with the generally accepted
views of the human attitude towards death and mourning.

Throughout this ritual, the unfortunate remains of the
man are constantly worried. His body is twice exhumed 5
it is cut up 5 some of its bones are peeled out of the car-

148

DEATH AND THE BEREAVED

cass, are handled, are given to one party and then to
another, until at last they come to a final rest. And what
makes the whole performance most disconcerting is the
absence of the real protagonist — Hamlet without the
Prince of Denmark. For the spirit of the dead man
knows nothing about all that happens to his body and
bones, and cares less, since he is already leading a happy
existence in Tuma, the netherworld, having breathed of
the magic of oblivion and formed new ties (see ch. xii,
sec. 5). The ritual performances at his twice-opened
grave and over his buried remains, and all that is done
with his relics, are merely a social game, where the various
groupings into which the community has re-crystallized
at his death play against each other. This, I must add
with great emphasis, represents the actual contemporary
view of the natives, and contains no hypothetical refer-
ence to the origins or past history of this institution.
Whether the dead man always had his spiritual back
turned on the Trobriand mortuary ritual, or whether his
spirit has gradually evaporated from it — it is not for the
field-worker to decide. In this context we shall have to
confine ourselves to the study of mortuary practices in
their barest outline only. A complete account of them
would easily fill a volume of the present size. We shall,
therefore, select such features as throw light on the ties
of marriage, and on the ideas of kinship and relationship 5
and even this will have to be done in a somewhat sche-
matic and simplified form.^

1 Compare the brief account of these ceremonies among the Northern
Massim, by Professor C. G. Seligman, The Melanesians .of British Neio
Guinea.

149

DIVORCE AND DEATH

Let us take the death of a man of consequence in the
fulness of age, leaving behind a widow, several children
and brothers. From the moment of his death, the dis-
tinction between his real, that is matrilineal, kinsmen
iyeyola) on the one hand, and his children, relatives-in-
law and friends on the other, takes on a sharp and even
an outwardly visible form. The kinsmen of the deceased
fall under a taboo 3 they must keep aloof from the corpse.
They are not allowed either to wash or adorn or fondle
or bury it 5 for if they were to touch or to come near it,
pernicious influences from the body would attack them
and cause their disease and death. These pernicious in-
fluences are conceived in the form of a material exhala-
tion, issuing from the corpse and polluting the air. It is
called bwauloy a word which also designates the cloud of
smoke which surrounds a village especially on steamy,
calm days. The necrogenic hwauloy invisible to common
eyes, appears to a witch or sorcerer as a black cloud
shrouding the village. It is innocuous to strangers, but
dangerous to kinsmen (ch. xiii, sec. i).

The kindred must also not display any outward signs
of mourning in costume and ornamentation, though they
need not conceal their grief and may show it by weeping.
Here the underlying idea is that the maternal kinsmen
{yeyola) are hit in their own persons 5 that each one suf-
fers because the whole sub-clan to which they belong has
been maimed by the loss of one of its members. "As if
a limb were cut off, or a branch lopped from a tree."
Thus, though they need not hide their grief, they must
not parade it. This abstention from outward mourning

150

DEATH AND THE BEREAVED

extends, not only to all the members of the sub-clan be-
yond the real kinsmen, but to all the members of the clan
to which the dead man belonged. On the other hand,
the taboo against touching the corpse applies primarily to
the members of the sub-clan and especially to the actual
kinsmen, to whom, of course, the temptation to touch the
corpse, as an expression of love, would be strongest.

Quite different, in the native idea, is the relation of the
widow, and of the children and relatives-in-law, to the
dead and to his corpse. They ought, according to the
moral code, to suffer and to feel bereaved. But in feeling
thus they are not suffering directly j they are not griev-
ing for a loss which affects their own sub-clan (dala) and
therefore their own persons. Their grief is not sponta-
neous like that of the veyola (maternal kinsmen), but a
duty almost artificial, springing as it does from acquired
obligations. Therefore they must ostentatiously express
their grief, display it, and bear witness to it by outward
signs. If they did not, they would offend the surviving
members of the dead man's sub-clan. Thus an interest-
ing situation develops, giving rise to a most strange spec-
tacle: a few hours after the death of a notable, the vil-
lage is thronged by people, with their heads shaven, the
whole body thickly smeared with soot, and howling like
demons in despair. And these are the non-kinsmen of the
dead man, the people not actually bereaved. In contrast to
these a number of others are to be seen in their usual at-
tire, outwardly calm and behaving as if nothing had hap-
pened. These represent the sub-clan and clan of the de-
ceased, and are the actually bereaved. Thus by a devious

151

DIVORCE AND DEATH

reasoning, tradition and custom produce the reverse of
what would seem natural and obvious to us or any ob-
server from almost any other culture.

Among those who display their grief, it is easy to dis-
tinguish several groups and grades. There is the rank
and file of mourners, comprising all the people belonging
to the remaining three clans j for, when a notable dies,
everyone in the village community puts on mourning,
except the members of his own clan. A small group is
busy about the body and the grave 3 this consists of the
male children and brothers-in-law of the deceased. Near-
est to the corpse and plunged most deeply in the mimicry
of grief are seated a few women, among whom one, the
widow, is conspicuous, supported by her daughters and
sisters. In this group, and it may be in that of the sons
also, an observer well acquainted with these natives would
be able to distinguish an interesting interplay of feigned
and merely histrionic grief with real and heartfelt sorrow.

FUNERAL CEREMONIES AND THE OBLIGATIONS
OF MOURNING

With this sociological scheme before us, we can now
follow the sequence of event and ritual which begins
automatically with a man's death. When death is seen
to be approaching, the wife and children, kinsmen and
relatives-in-law crowd round the bed, filling the small
hut to overflowing. The consummation of death is
-marked by a frantic outburst of wailing. The widow,

152

FUNERAL CEREMONIES

who generally stands at the head of the dying man, ut-
ters the first piercing shriek, to which immediately other
women respond, till the village is filled with the strange
harmonies of the melodious dirge. From this moment
all the varied activities of the days, and even weeks,
which follow will be carried on to the choral accompani-
ment of a long-drawn wail which never stops for one
instant. At times it swells up in violent and discordant
gusts 3 then ebbs again into soft, melodious strains, mu-
sically well expressing sorrow. To me, this powerful
uneven stream of sound, flowing over the village and
enveloping as it were all these human beings in a feeble,
imbecile protest against death, became symbolic of all
that was deeply human and real in the otherwise stifF,
conventional, incomprehensible ritual of mourning.

First the corpse is washed, anointed, and covered with
ornaments (pis. 32 and 33), then the bodily apertures
are filled with coconut husk fibre, the legs tied together,
and the arms bound to the sides. Thus prepared, it is
placed on the knees of a row of women who sit on the
floor of the hut, with the widow or widower at one end
holding the head.^ They fondle the corpse, stroke the
skin with caressing hands, press valuable objects against
chest and abdomen, move the limbs slightly and agitate
the head. The body is thus made to move and twist with
slow and ghastly gestures to the rhythm of the incessant
wailing. The hut is full of mourners, all intoning the
melodious lamentation. Tears flow from their eyes and

1 Cf. pi. Ixv in Argonauts of the Western Pacific, where this act is re-
constructed outside the hut for purposes of photography and the widow
is replaced by the son.

153

DIVORCE AND DEATH

mucus from their noses, and all the liquids of grief
are carefully displayed and smeared over their bodies
or otherwise conspicuously disposed. Outside, certain
women, usually relatives-in-law of the dead man, per-
form a slow rhythmic dance (the vaysalt) with relics in
their hands (pi. ii).

The sons in the meantime dig the grave, which in olden
days was always on the central place of the village, but
which now, by the white man's decree, must be on the
outskirts. A few hours after death the body is laid in it,
wrapped in mats, and is covered with logs, which leave a
shallow space above. On this layer of logs the widow
lies down to keep vigil over the corpse. Her daughter
may be beside her j round the brink of the grave are her
sisters, kinswomen and friends, and the other relatives-
in-law of the dead man. As night draws on, the central
place fills with people j for even nowadays the white
man's regulations against burial in the baku are circum-
vented by making a temporary grave there, or placing the
corpse on the ground. Here the mourners, the kinsmen,
all the villagers and many guests from far afield congre-
gate to hold a most remarkable wake {yawali).

The chief mourners and kinsmen in appropriate groups
keep the central position round the grave. Outside this
inner ring, the villagers and guests are seated, each com-
munity in a separate body, their mood and behaviour be-
coming less tragic as they are farther removed from the
corpse, until on the outskirts of the crowd, we find people
in animated conversation, eating and chewing betel nut.
The central group of mourners intones the deep wail of

154

FUNERAL CEREMONIES

sorrow, the others sing songs, and, as the night goes on,
people will stand up and recite fragments of magic in
honour of the departed, chanting them over the heads of
the crowd.

The body is not allowed to remain long in peace — if
the weird, noisy, and discordant din of singing, wailing,
and haranguing can be so described. On the following
evening, the body is exhumed, and inspected for signs of
sorcery (see pi. 33). Such an inspection yields most im-
portant clues, as to who caused the death by witchcraft
and for what motive this was done. I have assisted at
this ceremony several times 5 the photograph for plate 33
was taken during the first exhumation of Ineykoya, wife
of Toyodala, my best informant in Oburaku.^

Before daybreak after the first exhumation, the body
is taken out of the grave, and some of the bones are re-
moved from it. This anatomical operation is done by the
man's sons, who keep some of the bones as relics and dis-
tribute the others to certain of their relatives. This prac-
tice has been strictly forbidden by the Government —
another instance of the sacrifice of most sacred religious
custom to the prejudice and moral susceptibilities of the
"civilized" white. Yet the Trobrianders are so deeply
attached to this custom that it is still clandestinely per-
formed, and I have seen the jaw-bone of a man with
whom I had spoken a few days before dangling from the
neck of his widow (see pis. 34, 25y and 2^^).

The excision of the bones and their subsequent use as

1 For further information about the signs of sorcery, see Crime and
Custom, pp. 87-91.

155

DIVORCE AND DEATH

relics is an act of piety 5 the process of detaching them
from the putrefying corpse, a heavy, repugnant, and dis-
gusting duty. The sons of the deceased are expected by
custom to curb and conceal their disgust, and to suck some
of the decaying matter when they are cleaning the bones.
Speaking with virtuous pride they will say: "I have sucked
the radius bone of my father 5 I had to go away and
vomit 3 I came back and went on." After they have
cleansed the bones, which is always done on the seashore,
they return to the village, and the dead man's kinswomen
ceremonially "wash their mouths" by giving them food
and purify their hands with coconut oil. The bones are
converted to various purposes, serviceable and ornamental :
the skull is made into a lime pot to be used by the widow 5
the jaw-bone is turned into a neck ornament to hang on
her breast 5 the radius, ulna, tibia, and some other bones
are carved into lime spatulas to be used with betel and
areca nut.

A curious mixed sentiment underlies this complex of
customs. On the one hand, it should be the wish of the
widow and children to keep a part of the beloved dead.
"The relic {kayvaluha) brings the departed back to our
mind and makes our inside tender." On the other hand,
the use of these relics is regarded as a harsh and un-
pleasant duty, as a sort of pious repayment for all the
benefits received from the father. As it was explained
to me: "Our mind is grieved for the man who has fed
us, who has given us dainties to eat 5 we suck his bones
as lime spatulse." Or again: "It is right that a child
should suck the father's ulna. For the father has held

156

FUNERAL CEREMONIES

out his hand to its excrement and allowed it to make
water on to his knee" (compare similar locutions quoted
in section 3 of chapter i). Thus the use of relics is at
the same time a relief to the bereaved widow and chil-
dren, and an act of filial piety which must be rigorously-
observed.

To the dead man's maternal kinsmen (veyola) the use
of his bones is strictly tabooed. If they broke this taboo
they would fall ill, their bellies would swell and they
might die. The contact is most dangerous when the bone
is still wet with the dead man's bodily juices. When,
after a few years, the bones are handed over to the kins-
men, they are presented carefully wrapped in dry leaves,
and are then only gingerly handled by them. They are
finally deposited on rocky shelves overlooking the sea.
Thus the bones pass several times from hand to hand be-
fore they come to their final rest.

More distant relatives-in-law and friends of the dead
man have his nails, teeth and hair, which they make into
all sorts of mourning ornaments and wear as relics. The
dead man's personal possessions are used in the same way,
and nowadays, when the bodily relics have frequently to
be concealed, this practice is very much in favour (see
frontispiece).

After the second exhumation the body is buried, the
wake is over, and the people disperse 5 but the widow,
who, during all this time, has not stirred from her hus-
band's side, nor eaten nor drunk nor stopped in her wail-
ing, is not yet released. Instead she moves into a small
cage, built within her house, where she will remain for

^57

DIVORCE AND DEATH

months together, observing the strictest taboos. She must
not leave the place j she may only speak in whispers j she
must not touch food or drink with her own hands, but
wait till they are put into her mouth j she remains closed
up in the dark, without fresh air or light 5 her body is
thickly smeared over with soot and grease, which will not
be washed oflF for a long time. She satisfies all the neces-
sities of life indoors, and the excreta have to be carried
out by her relatives. Thus she lives for months shut up
in a low-roofed, stuflFy, pitch-dark space, so small that
with outstretched hands she can almost touch the walls
on either sidej it is often filled with people who assist or
comfort her, and pervaded by an indescribable atmosphere
of human exhalations, accumulated bodily filth, stale
food, and smoke. Also she is under the more or less
active control and surveillance of her husband's matri-
lineal relatives, who regard her mourning and its inherent
privations as their due. When the term of her widow-
hood has almost run its course — ^its length depends upon
the status of her husband and varies from about six
months to two years — she is gradually released by the
dead man's kinsmen. Food is put into her mouth accord-
ing to a ritual which gives her permission to eat with her
own hands. Then, ceremonially, she is allowed to speak j
finally she is released from the taboo of confinement and,
still with appropriate ritual, requested to walk forth. At
the ceremony of her complete release by the female
veyola of the dead man, the widow is washed and
anointed, and dressed in a new gaudy grass skirt in three
colours. This makes her marriageable again.

158

IDEOLOGY OF MOURNING

THE IDEOLOGY OF MOURNING

Throughout the rigorous ritual of mourning, in which
the widow, the orphans, and to a much lesser degree the
other relatives-in-law of the deceased are caught and held
as in a vise, we can observe the working of certain ideas
belonging to the tribal tradition of the Trobrianders.
One especially, the taboo on maternal kinsmen, which
forces them to keep aloof since it is both dangerous to
approach the corpse and superfluous to show grief, is
strikingly visible throughout the whole course of burial,
exhumation, and grave-tending. The corresponding idea,
that it is the imperative duty of the widow and her rela-
tives to show grief and perform all the mortuary services,
emphasizes the strength and the permanence of marriage
bonds as viewed by tradition. It is also a posthumous
continuation of the remarkable system of services which
have to be given to a married man by his wife's family,
including the woman herself and her children.

In the mortuary phase of these services, however, the
dead man's sub-clan have to render payment more strictly
and more frequently than he had to do in his life-time.
Immediately after the bones have been cut out and the
remains buried, the dead man's sub-clan organize the first
big distribution of food and valuables, in which the widow,
children, and other relatives-in-law, as well as the unre-
lated mourners, are richly paid for the various services
rendered in tending the corpse and digging the grave.

159

DIVORCE AND DEATH

Other distributions follow at stated intervals. There is
one expressly for women mourners 5 one for the tenders
of the grave j one for the rank and file of mourners j one,
by far the largest, in which presents of valuables and enor-
mous quantities of food are given to the widow and chil-
dren, in so far as they, in grief and piety, have used the
bones of the dead man for their lime-chewing or as orna-
ments. This intricate series of distributions stretches out
into years, and it entails a veritable tangle of obligations
and duties 3 for the members of the deceased's sub-clan
must provide food and give it to the chief organizer, the
headman of the sub-clan, who collects it and then dis-
tributes it to the proper beneficiaries. These, in their
turn, partially at least, re-distribute it. And each gift in
this enormous complex trails its own wake of counter-
gifts and obligations to be fulfilled at a future date.

The ostentation with which the widow and children
have to display their grief, the thickness — ^literally and
metaphorically speaking — with which they put on their
mourning are indeed striking 3 and the underlying com-
plex psychology of these things must have become ap-
parent in the above account. In the first place, it is a
duty towards the dead and towards his sub-clan, a duty
strongly enjoined by the code of morals and guarded by
public opinion, as well as by the kinsmen. "Our tears —
they are for the kinsmen of our father to see," as one of
the mourners simply and directly told me. In the second
place, it demonstrates to the world at large that the wife
and children were really good to the dead and that they
took great care of him in his illness. Lastly, and this is

160

IDEOLOGY OF MOURNING

very important, it allays any suspicion of their complicity
in his murder by black magic. To understand the last
queer motive, one has to realize the extreme fear, the
ever-vigilant suspicion of sorcery, and the unusual lack
of trust in anyone at all with reference to it. The Tro-
brianders, in common with all races at their culture level,
regard every death without exception as an act of sorcery,
unless it is caused by suicide or by a visible accident, such
as poisoning or a spear thrust. It is characteristic of their
idea of the bonds of marriage and fatherhood — ^which
they regard as artificial and untrustworthy under any
strain — that the principal suspicion of sorcery attaches al-
ways to the wife and children. The real interest in a
man's welfare, the real affection, the natural innocence of
any attempt against him are, by the traditional system of
ideas, attributed to his maternal kinsmen. His wife and
children are mere strangers, and custom persists in ignor-
ing any real identity of interest between them.^

How utterly this traditional view is generally at vari-
ance with the economic and psychological reality, has
been shown, and illustrated by many facts in chapter i,
sections i and 2. For, apart from the personal attach-
ment which always exists between husband and wife,
father and children, it is clear that a man's children lose
more at his death than do his kinsmen, who, as his heirs,
always gain materially, especially in the case of a man of
wealth, rank, and importance. And, in reality, the actual

1 Even this is a simplified account, one in which the ideal of native law
and tradition is emphasized, as is always done by the natives themselves.
The full account of native ideas about sorcery in relation to kinship and
relationship by marriage will have to be postponed to a later publication.

i6i

DIVORCE AND DEATH

feelings of the survivors run their natural course inde-
pendently of the mimic and official display of grief. The
existence of an individual reality of thought, sentiment,
and impulse, unfolding itself side by side with the con-
ventional sentiment and idea contained in and imposed by
a traditional pattern, is one of the most important sub-
jects of social psychology — a subject on which we need
more material from ethnological investigation, carried
on with a good deal of detail and based upon personal
knowledge of the savages observed.

In the Trobriands, the genuine sorrow of the widow
and children is blurred, overlaid, and made almost un-
recognizable by the histrionic display of grief. But their
real feelings can be gauged by observing their behaviour
at other times, especially under critical conditions. I
have seen more than one case of a husband sitting night
after night at his sick wife's bedside. I have seen his
Jiopes surge and ebb, and unmistakable, even deep, de-
spair set in as the apparent chances of survival waned.
Differences are clearly distinguishable in the sorrow of
■widows and widowers, some merely conforming to cus-
tom, others genuinely grieving. To'uluwa, the chief,
though a rather selfish and shallow character, could not
•speak about the death of Kadamwasila, his favourite wife,
without visible and real emotion. Toyodala, the nicest
man I knew in Oburaku (see pi. 2^2)7 was for weeks anx-
iously watching his wife's illness, and hoping for her re-
covery. When she died, he behaved at first like a mad-
man, and then, during his mourning confinement, in
which I often visited him, he wept so bitterly that his

162

IDEOLOGY OF MOURNING

eyesight suffered. There is no doubt at all that the
kinsmen feel the personal loss much less. On the other
hand, their conventional sentiment of bereavement and
realization of the maiming of their group do not leave
them unaffected. But here we enter upon a problem,
that of feelings and ideas relating to the solidarity of the
clan, which, if followed up, would take us too far away
from our subject.

The study of marriage has led us away from the study
of sex in the narrower sense of the word. We have had
to consider questions of social organization, and the legal,
economic, and religious setting of the relation between
husband and wife, parents and children. This last sub-
ject, parenthood, will still occupy us in the next two
chapters, before we pass to the detailed analysis of the
sexual impulse in its cultural manifestations among our
natives.

163

CHAPTER VII

PROCREATION AND PREGNANCY IN NATIVE
BELIEF AND CUSTOM

The dependence o£ social organization in a given society
upon the ideas, beliefs, and sentiments current there is of
primary importance to the anthropologist. Among sav-
age races we often find unexpected and fantastic views
about natural processes, and correspondingly extreme and
one-sided developments of social organization as regards
kinship, communal authority, and tribal constitution. In
this chapter I shall give an account of the Trobrianders'
idea of the human organism as it affects their beliefs about
procreation and gestation, beliefs which are embodied in
oral tradition, customs, and ceremonies, and which exer-
cise a deep influence on the social facts of kinship and on
the matrilineal constitution of the tribe.

THE MALE AND FEMALE ORGANISM AND THE SEXUAL
IMPULSE IN NATIVE BELIEF

The natives have a practical acquaintance with the
main features of the human anatomy, and an extensive
vocabulary for the various parts of the human body and
for the internal organs. They often cut up pigs and
other animals, while the custom of fost mortem dissec-

164

THE SEXUAL IMPULSE

tion of corpses, and visits among their overseas cannibal
neighbours supply them with an exact knowledge of the
homologies of the human and animal organism. Their
physiological theories, on the other hand, are remarkably
defective 3 there are many notable gaps in their knowledge
about the functions of the most important organs, side
by side with some fantastic and strange ideas.

Their understanding of sexual anatomy is, on the
whole, limited in comparison with what they know about
other parts of the human body. Considering the great
interest which they take in this matter, the distinctions
which they make are superficial and rough, and their
terminology meagre. They distinguish and name the
following parts: vagina {wila)^ clitoris {kasesa)^ penis
{kwila)y testes {fuwala). They have no words to de-
scribe the mons veneris as a whole, nor the labia major a
and minora. The glans fenis they describe as the "point"
of the penis {matala kwila) and the prepuce as the skin
of the penis {kanivinela kwila). The internal female
organs are called generically bam^ and this comprises the
uterus and the placenta. There is no special word for
the ovaries.

Their physiological views are crude. The organs, of
sex serve for excretion and for pleasure. The excretive
urinary processes are not associated with the kidneys. A
narrow duct {wotuna) leads from the stomach directly to
the bladder, from which it passes through the male and
female genitals. Through this canal the water which we
drink passes slowly till it is expelled, and on its way it
becomes discoloured and sullied in the stomach by contact

165

PROCREATION AND PREGNANCY

with excrement. For food begins to be changed into
excrement in the stomach.

Their ideas about the sexual functions of the genitals
are more complex and systematic, and present a sort of
psycho-physiological theory. The eyes are the seat of
desire and lust (magila kayta^ literally "desire of copu-
lation"). They are the basis or cause (u^ula) of sexual
passion. From the eyes, desire is carried to the brain by
means of the wotuna (literally, tendril or creeper j in the
anatomical context, vein, nerve, duct, or sinew), and
thence spreads all over the body to the belly, the arms,
the legs, until it finally concentrates in the kidneys. The
kidneys are considered the main or middle part or trunk
{tafwand) of the system. From them, other ducts
(wo tuna) lead to the male organ. This is the tip or
point (matalay literally eye) of the whole system. Thus,
when the eyes see an object of desire they "wake up,"
communicate the impulse to the kidneys, which transmit
it to the penis and cause an erection. Hence the eyes are
the primary motive of all sexual excitement: they are "the
things of copulation" 3 they are "that which makes us de-
sire to copulate." In proof of this the natives say: "A
man with his eyes closed will have no erection" 3 though
they qualify this statement by admitting that the olfac-
tory sense can sometimes replace the eyes, for "when a
woman discards her grass petticoat in the dark, desire may
be aroused."

The process of sexual excitement in the female is
analogous. Thus the eyes, the kidneys and the sexual
organs are united by the same system of wo tuna (com-

166

THE SEXUAL IMPULSE

municating ducts). The eyes give the alarm, which passes
through the body, takes possession of the kidneys, and
produces sexual excitation of the clitoris. Both the male
and female discharge are called by the same name
(jnomona or momold)^ and they ascribe to both the same
origin in the kidneys, and the same function, which has
nothing to do with generation, but is concerned with
lubricating the membrane and increasing pleasure.

I first obtained this account of the subject from Nam-
wana Guya'u and Piribomatu, the former an amateur and
the latter a professional sorcerer ^ both were intelligent
men and both, in virtue of their profession, were inter-
ested in human anatomy and physiology. Thus it repre-
sents the highest development of Trobriand knowledge
and theory. I obtained similar statements in other parts
of the island, and in their main outline — such as the
sexual functions of the kidneys, the great importance of
the eyes and the olfactory sense, and the strict parallel
between male and female sexuality — all were in agree-
ment.

And on the whole, it is a fairly consisteiit, and not
altogether nonsensical view of the psycho-physiology of
sexual libido. The drawing of a parallel between the
two sexes is consistent. The indication of the three car-
dinal points of the sexual system is sound, and character-
istic of native canons of classification. In many subjects
they distinguish these three elements: the uWlay the taf-
wanay and the matala. The image is derived from a tree
or a pillar or a spear: u^ula — in its literal sense the foot
of the tree, the base, the foundation — has come, by ex-

167

PROCREATION AND PREGNANCY

tension, to mean cause, origin, source of strength 5 taf-
wanay the middle part of the trunk, also means the trunk
itself, the main body of any elongated object, the length
of a road 3 fnatala — originally eye, or point (as in a spear),
and sometimes replaced by the word dogma or dahwanay
the tip of a tree or the top of any high object — stands for
the highest part, or, in more abstract metaphor, the final
word, the highest expression.

The comparison as generally applied to the sexual
mechanism is not, as we have said, altogether devoid of
meaning, and only becomes nonsensical in ascribing a
special function to the kidneys. These are regarded as
a highly important and vital part of the human organism,
and mainly because they are the source of the seminal
fluid. Another view attributes male and female dis-
charge, not to the kidneys, but to the bowels. In either
case, the natives consider that something in the bowels is
the actual agent of ejaculation: ipipsi motnona — "it
squirts out the discharge."

Very remarkable is their entire ignorance of the physio-
logical function of the testes. They are not aware that
anything is produced in this organ, and leading questions
as to whether the male fluid {momond) has not its source
there are answered emphatically in the negative. "See,
women have no testes and yet they produce momona?^
This part of the male body is said to be only an orna-
mental appendage {katuhuhula) . "Indeed, how ugly
would a penis look without the testes," a native aesthete
will exclaim. The testes serve "to make it look proper"
{hwoynd),

168

THE SEXUAL IMPULSE

Love or affection {yobwaylt) has its seat in the intes-
tines, in the skin of the belly, and of the arms, and only
to a lesser extent in those springs of desire, the eyes.
Hence, we like to look at those of whom we are fond,
such as our children, our friends, or our parents, but
when this love is strong we want to hug them.

Menstruation the Trobrianders regard as a phenome-
non connected with pregnancy in a vague manner: "the
flow comes, it trickles, it trickles, it ebbs — it is over."
They denote it simply by the word blood, buyaviy but
with a characteristic grammatical peculiarity. While or-
dinary bodily blood is always mentioned with the pronoun
of nearest possession, which is affixed to all the parts of a
human body, menstruous blood is spoken of with the
same possessive pronouns as are used for ornamentation
and articles of apparel (second nearest possession). Thus
huyavlgUy "blood-mine" ("part of me — ^blood"), means
bodily blood coming from a cut or haemorrhage 5 agu
buyaviy "my blood" ("belonging to me — ^blood"), means
menstruous blood.

There is no pronounced masculine dislike or dread of
menstruous blood. A man will not cohabit with his wife
or sweetheart during her monthly period, but he will
remain in the same hut and participate in the same food,
and only refrains from sleeping in the same bed. Women,
during menstruation, wash themselves daily, for purposes
of cleanliness, in the same large water hole from which
the whole village draws its drinking water, and in which,
also, males occasionally take a bath. There are no special
ablutions ceremonially carried out at the end of the pe-

169

PROCREATION AND PREGNANCY

riod, nor is any rite performed when a girl menstruates
for the first time. The women have no special way of
dressing during menstruation, except that at times they
wear a longer skirt, and there is no particular modesty on
the subject between the sexes.

REINCARNATION AND THE WAY TO LIFE THROUGH THE
SPIRIT WORLD

The relation between menstruous blood and the for-
mation of the foetus has been observed and recognized by
the natives, but their ideas about it are extremely vague.
Such as they are, they are so mixed up with beliefs about
the incarnation of spiritual beings, that physiological
process and spiritual agencies will have to be considered
together in this account. Thus we shall preserve the
natural sequence and perspective of native doctrine. Since
the new life, in Trobriand tradition, begins with death,
we shall now have to move to the bedside of a dying
man, and follow the progress of his spirit till we trace
him back to earthly existence again.^

The spirit after death moves to Tuma, the Island
of the Dead, where he leads a pleasant existence analo-
gous to the terrestrial life — only much happier. Into

1 In my article "Baloraa, the Spirits of the Dead" already quoted, I
have given a short preliminary account of native beliefs concerning pro-
creation. I also expressed certain opinions about primitive ignorance of
paternity in general, some of which were challenged by Professor Wester-
marck {History of Human Marriage, 5th edition, vol. i, pp. 290 sq.) and
by Professor Carveth Read (article, "No Paternity" in the Journal of the
Anthropological Institute, 1917). The fuller evidence adduced in this
chapter answers certain questions of fact raised by my critics.

170

REINCARNATION AND SPIRIT WORLD

the nature of this bliss we shall have to inquire in some-
what more detail, for sex plays an important part in it.^
Here we are concerned with one of its features only: per-
petual youth, preserved by the power of rejuvenation.
Whenever the spirit {haloma) sees that bodily hair is cov-
ering his skin, that the skin itself is getting loose and
wrinkled, and that his head is turning grey, he simply
sloughs his covering and appears fresh and young, with
black locks and smooth hairless skin.

But when a spirit becomes tired of constant rejuvena-
tion, when he has led a long existence "underneath" as
the natives call it, he may want to return to earth again 5
and then he leaps back in age and becomes a small pre-
born infant. Some of my informants pointed out that in
Tuma, as on earth, there are plenty of sorcerers. Black
magic is frequently practised, and can reach a spirit and
make him weak, sick and tired of life 3 then, and then
only, will he go back to the beginnings of his existence
and change into a spirit-child. To kill a spirit by black
magic or accident is quite impossible 5 his end will always
mean merely a new beginning.

These rejuvenated spirits, these little pre-incarnated
babies or spirit-children, are the only source from which
humanity draws its new supplies of life. A pre-born
infant finds its way back to the Trobriands and into the
womb of some woman, but always of a woman who be-
longs to the same clan and sub-clan as the spirit child
itself. Exactly how it travels from Tuma to Boyowa,
how it enters the body of its mother, and how there the

1 Cf. below, ch. xii, last section.

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PROCREATION AND PREGNANCY

physiological processes of gestation combine with the spirit
activity, are questions on which native belief is not alto-
gether consistent. But that all spirits have ultimately to
end their life in Tuma and turn into unborn infants j that
every child born in this world has first come into exist-
ence {ibubuli) in Tuma through the metamorphosis of a
spirit j that the only reason and real cause of every birth
is spirit activity, are facts known to everybody and firmly
believed by all.

Owing to its importance, I collected details and vari-
ants of this system of beliefs with special care. The re-
juvenation process is associated in a general way with sea
water. In the myth which describes how humanity lost
the privilege of regaining youth at will, the scene of the
last rejuvenation is laid on the seashore in one of the
lagoon inlets.^ In the first account of rejuvenation which
I obtained in Omarakana, I was told that the spirit "goes
to the beach and bathes in the salt water." Tomwaya
Lakwabulo the Seer (pi. 37), who in his trances often goes
to Tuma and has frequent intercourse with the spirits, told
me: "The baloma go to a spring called sofiwina (literally
Vashing water') j it lies on the beach. There they wash
their skin with brackish water. They become to^ulatile
(young men)." Likewise in the final rejuvenation, which
makes them return to the infant state, the spirits have to
bathe in salt water, and, when they become babies again,
they go into the sea and drift. They are always spoken

1 This story is given in Myth in Primitive Psychology, pp. 80-106. The
village of Bwadela, where the loss of immortality occurred, is on the
west shore of the southern half of the main island.

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REINCARNATION AND SPIRIT WORLD

of as floating on drift-logs, or on the leaves, boughs, dead
seaweed, sea-scum, and the other light substances which
litter the surface of the sea. Tomwaya Lakwabulo says
that they float all the time around the shores of Tuma,,
wailing wa^ way wa. "At night I hear their wailing. I
ask, 'What is it?' 'Oh, children j the tide brings them^
they come.' " The spirits in Tuma can see these pre-
incarnated infants, and so can Tomwaya Lakwabulo when
he descends into the spirit world. But to ordinary people
they are invisible. At times, however, fishermen from
the northern villages of Kaybola and Lu'ebila, when they
go far out into the sea after shark, will hear the wailing
— way way wa — in the sighing of the wind and the waves.
Tomwaya Lakwabulo and other informants maintain
that such spirit children never float far away from Tuma.
They are transported to the Trobriands by the help of
another spirit. Tomwaya Lakwabulo gives the following
account. "A child floats on a drift log. A spirit sees it
is good-looking. She takes it. She is the spirit of the
mother or of the father of the pregnant woman (nasu-
suma) . Then she puts it on the head, in the hair, of the
pregnant woman, who suffers headache, vomits, and has
an ache in the belly. Then the child comes down into the
belly, and she is really pregnant. She says: 'Already it
(the child) has found mej already they (the spirits) have
brought me the child.' " In this account we find two
leading ideas: the active intervention of another spirit — •
the one who somehow conveys the child back to the Tro-
briands and gives it to the mother — ^and the insertion of

173

PROCREATION AND PREGNANCY

it through the head, with which (not in the statement
quoted, but usually) is associated the idea of an effusion
of blood, first to the head and then into the abdomen.

As to how the transportation is actually accomplished
opinions vary: there are natives who imagine that the
Dlder spirit carries the baby either in some sort of re-
ceptacle— a plaited coconut basket or a wooden dish —
or else simply in her arms. Others say candidly that they
do not know. But the active control of another spirit is
essentially important. When natives say that the chil-
dren are "given by a balomay^ that "a baloma is the real
cause of childbirth," they refer always to this controlling
spirit (as we might call it), and not to the spirit baby
itself. This controlling spirit usually appears in a dream
to the woman about to be pregnant (see ch. viii, sec. i).
As Motago'i, one of my best informants, volunteered:
^'She dreams her mother comes to her, she sees the face
of her mother in a dream. She wakes up, and says: 'Oh,
there is a child for me.' "

Frequently a woman will tell her husband who it was
that brought the baby to her. And the tradition of this
spiritual godfather or godmother is preserved. Thus the
present chief of Omarakana knows that it was Bugwab-
waga, one of his predecessors in office, who gave him to his
mother. My best friend, Tokulubakiki, was a gift to his
mother from her kadala^ mother's brother. Tokulu-
bakiki's wife received her eldest daughter from her
mother's spirit. Usually it is some maternal relative of
the prospective mother who bestows the gift; but it may
be her father, as in Tomwaya Lakwabulo's statement.

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REINCARNATION AND SPIRIT WORLD

The physiological theory associated with this belief
has already been touched on. The spirit-child is laid by
the bringer on the woman's head. Blood from her body
rushes there, and on this tide of blood the baby gradually
descends until it settles in the womb. The blood helps to
build the body of the child — it nourishes it. That is the
reason why, when a woman becomes pregnant, her men-
struous flow stops. A woman will see that her menstrua-
tion has stopped. She will wait one, two, three moons,
and then she will know for certain that she is pregnant.
A much less authoritative belief maintains that the baby,
is inserted fer vaginam.

Another version of the story of reincarnation ascribes
more initiative to the pre-incarnated infant. It is sup-
posed to be able to float of its own will towards the Tro-
briands. There it remains, probably in company with
others, drifting about the shores of the island, awaiting
its chance to enter the body of a woman while she bathes.
Certain observances kept by girls in coastal villages are
evidence that the belief has vitality. The spirit children
are imagined, as around Tuma, to be attached to drift
logs, scum, leaves, and branches, or else to the small
stones on the bottom of the sea. Whenever, through
wind and tide, much debris accumulates near the shore,
the girls will not enter the water for fear they might con-
ceive. Again, in the villages on the northern coast, there
is a custom of filling a wooden baler with water from the
sea which is then left overnight in the hut of a woman
who wishes to conceive, on the chance that a spirit-child
might have been caught in the baler and transfer itself

175

PROCREATION AND PREGNANCY

during the night into the woman. But even in this case,
the woman is said to be visited in her dream by the spirit
of some deceased maternal relative, so that a controlling
spirit is still essential to conception. It is important to
note that the water must always be fetched by her brother
or by her mother's brother 5 that is, by a maternal kins-
man. To give an example: a man from the village of
Kapwani, on the northern shore, was asked by his sister's
daughter to procure her a child. He went several times
to the beach. One evening he heard a sound like the
wailing of children. He drew water from the sea into
the baler and left it in his kadaWs (niece's) hut over
night. She conceived a child, a girl. This child, unfor-
tunately, turned out to be an albino, but this mischance
was not due to the method of conception.

The chief points in which this belief differs from the
one first described are that the pre-incarnated spirit child
is endowed with more spontaneity — it can float across the
sea and enter the bathing woman without help — and that
its entry is effected fer vaglnaniy or else through the skin
of the abdomen if conception takes place in the hut. I
found this belief prevalent in the northern part of the
island, and especially in its coastal villages.

The nature of the spirit-child, or pre-incarnated baby,
is not very clearly defined in traditional folk-lore. In
answer to a direct question, the majority of informants
said that they did not know what it was or what it looked
like. One or two, however, who, through their superior
intelligence, had worked out their beliefs in greater detail
and with more consistency, said that it was like the foetus

176

REINCARNATION AND SPIRIT WORLD

in the womb which, they added, "looks like a mouse."
Tomwaya Lakwabulo volunteered the statement that pre-
incarnated infants look like very minute and fully devel-
oped children, and that they are sometimes very beautiful.
He had to say something, of course, since, on his own
showing, he had seen them frequently in Tuma. Even
the nomenclature is not quite definite. Usually it is called
*maywayay small child or foetus, but sometimes the word
fwafwawa is used, which, though almost synonymous
with waywaya^ refers perhaps rather to a child already
born than to the foetus or a pre-incarnated baby. Quite
as often, however, it is spoken of simply as "child," gwadi
(plural, gugwadi).

I was told, though I was not able to verify this com-
pletely, that there is a magic performed over a species of
betel leaf (kwega) called kaykatuv'tlena kwega^ to induce
pregnancy. A woman in Yourawotu, a small village near
Omarakana, knows this magic, but unfortunately I was
unable to get into touch with her/

Thus, as is always the case, this belief dissolves into
various and only pai-tially consistent elements when ex-
amined under the magnifying glass of detailed research
made over an extended area. The divergencies are not
wholly due to geographical differences 5 nor can they be
assigned to special social layers, for some of the incon-
sistencies occurred in the account of one and the same

^ A' statement which I guardedly gave on the authority of a trader in
my article for the Journal of the Anthropological Institute, 1916, p. 404,
to the effect that there are "some stones in Sinaketa, to which a woman
who wants to become enceinte may have recourse," I found quite baseless
after careful inquiries on the spot.

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PROCREATION AND PREGNANCY

man. Tomwaya Lakwabulo, for instance, insisted that
the children cannot travel alone, but must be carried by a
controlling spirit and placed in the woman j yet he in-
formed me that their wailing could be heard on the north
shore near Kaybola. Or, again, the man of Kiriwina, who
told me how the spirit child might enter from a baler,
also spoke of an older spirit "giving" that child. Such
inconsistencies are probably the result of several mytho-
logical cycles of ideas, meeting, so to speak, and inter-
secting on the locus of this belief. One of these cycles
contains the idea of rejuvenation 5 another that of fresh
life floating on the sea towards the island j another that a
new member of the family comes as a gift from some
ancestral spirit.

It is important, however, that, in all principal points,
the various versions and descriptions agree, overlap and
fortify one another 5 and we are left with a composite
picture which, though blurred in some of its details, pre-
sents a strong outline when viewed from a distance. Thus
all spirits rejuvenate j all children are incarnated spirits;
the identity of sub-clan is preserved throughout the cycle j
the real cause of childbirth is the spirit initiative from
Tuma,

It must be remembered, however, that the belief in
reincarnation is not one which exercises a great influence
over custom and social organization in the Trobriands;
rather it is one of those doctrines which lead a quiet and
passive existence in folk-lore, and affect social behaviour
only to a small extent. Thus, for instance, although the
Trobrianders firmly believe that each spirit becomes a pre-

178

IGNORANCE OF PATERNITY

born infant, and that this again becomes reincarnated into
a human being, yet no consciousness of personal identity-
is preserved through the process. That is, no one knows
whose incarnation the infant is- — who he was in his
previous existence. There is no remembrance of past lif-e
in Tuma or on earth. Any questioning of the natives
makes it obvious that the whole problem appears to them
irrelevant and indeed uninteresting. The only recognized
rule which guides these metamorphoses is that the con-
tinuity of clan and sub-clan is preserved throughout.
There are no moral ideas of recompense or punishment
embodied in their reincarnation theory, no customs or
ceremonies associated with it or bearing witness to it.

IGNORANCE OF PHYSIOLOGICAL PATERNITY

The correlation of the mystical with the physiological
aspects in pregnancy belief — of the origin of the child
in Tuma and its journey to the Trobriands with the sub-
sequent processes in the maternal body, the welling up
of the blood from the abdomen to the head and down
again from the head to the womb — provides a co-ordi-
nated and self-contained, though not always consistent,
theory of the origin of human life. It also gives a good
theoretical foundation for matriliny^ for the whole
process of introducing new life into a community lies
between the spirit world and the female organism. There
is no room for any sort of physical paternity.

But there is another condition considered by the natives

179

PROCREATION AND PREGNANCY

indispensable for conception and child-birth, which com-
plicates their theory and blurs the clear outline of their
belief. This condition is related to sexual intercourse,
and brings us face to face with the difficult and delicate
question: are the natives really entirely ignorant of physi-
ological fatherhood? Is it not rather a fact of which,
they are more or less aware, though it may be overlaid
and distorted by mythological and animistic beliefs? Is
it not an instance of empirical knowledge possessed by a
backward community, but never formulated because it is
too obvious to need explicit statement, whereas the tradi-
tional legend which is the basis of their social structure is
carefully expressed as a part of the body of authoritative,
dogma? The facts which I am about to adduce contain
an unambiguous and decisive answer to these questions. I
shall not anticipate the conclusion, which, indeed, as we
shall see, will be drawn by the natives themselves.

A virgin cannot conceive.

Tradition, diffuse folk-lore, certain aspects of custom
and customary behaviour, teach the natives this simple
physiological truth. They have no doubt about it, and it
will be seen from what follows that they can formulate
it tersely and clearly.

This statement was volunteered by Niyova, a sound
informant in Oburaku: "A virgin does not conceive, be-
cause there is no way for the children to go, for that
woman to conceive. When the orifice is wide open, the
spirits are aware, they give the child." This is quite
clear 5 but during the same sitting, the same informant
had previously given me a detailed description of how the

i8o

IGNORANCE OF PATERNITY

spirit lays the child on the woman's head. The words of
Niyova, here quoted verbatim, imply an insertion fer
vaglnam. Ibena, a clever old man of Kasana'i, gave me
a similar explanation — in fact, it was he who first made
it clear to me that virginity mechanically impedes spirit
impregnation. His method of explanation was graphic.
Holding out his closed fist, he asked: "Can anything
enter?" Then, opening it, he continued: "Now, of course,
it is easy. Thus it is that a hulabola (large orifice) con-
ceives easily, and a naka-patu (small or closed entrance, a
virgin) cannot do it."

I have quoted these two statements in extensOy as they
are telling and characteristic j but they are not isolated.
I received a great number of similar declarations, all ex-
pressing the view that the way must be open for the child,
but this need not necessarily be brought about by sexual
intercourse. The point is quite clear. The vagina must
be opened to remove the physiological obstacle, called
simply kdafatu (her tightness). Once this has been
done, in the normal way by sexual intercourse, there is no
need for male and female to come together in order to
produce a child.

Considering that there are no virgins in the villages —
for every female child begins her sexual life very early —
we may wonder how the natives arrived at this conditio
sine qua non. Again, since they have got so far, it may
appear difficult to see why they have not advanced just
a little further and grasped the fertilizing virtue of
seminal fluid. Nevertheless, there are many facts to
prove that they have not made this advance: as certainly

i8i

PROCREATION AND PREGNANCY

as they know the necessity of a mechanical opening of the
vagina, so they do not know the generative power of the
male discharge. It was in discussing the mythological
tales of mankind's beginnings on earth (see below, ch.
xiii, sec. 5) and fantastic legends of distant lands, to the
account of which I shall now proceed, that I was made
aware of this subtle yet all-important distinction between
mechanical dilation and physiological fertilization 5 and
was thus enabled to place native belief regarding pro-
creation in its proper perspective.

According to native tradition, mankind originated from
underground, whence a couple, a brother and a sister,
emerged at different specified places. According to certain
legends, only women appeared at first. Some of my com-
mentators insisted upon this version: "You see, we are so
many on the earth because many women came first. Had
there been many men, we would be few." Now, whether
accompanied by her brother or not, the primeval woman is
always imagined to bear children without the interven-
tion of a husband or of any other male partner 5 but not
without the vagina being opened by some means. In
some of the traditions this is mentioned explicitly. Thus
on the island of Vakuta there is a myth which describes
how an ancestress of one of the sub-clans exposed her
body to falling rain, and thus mechanically lost her vir-
ginity. In the most important Trobriand myth, a woman,
called Mitigis or Bolutukwa, mother of the legendary
hero Tudava, lives quite alone in a grotto on the seashore.
One day she falls asleep in her rocky dwelling, reclining
under a dripping stalactite. The drops of water pierce

182

IGNORANCE OF PATERNITY

her vagina, and thus deprive her of virginity. Hence
her second name, Bolutukwa: bo, female, prefix Utukway
dripping water. In other myths of origin the means of
piercing the hymen are not mentioned, but it is often
explicitly stated that the ancestress was without a man,
and could, therefore, have no sexual intercourse. When
asked in so many words how it was that they bore children
without a man, the natives would mention, more or less
coarsely or jestingly, some means of perforation which
they could easily have used, and it was clear that no more
■was necessary.

Moving into another mythological dimension — into
present-day legends of countries far to the north — ^we
find the marvellous land of Kaytalugi, peopled exclu-
sively by sexually rabid women.^ They are so brutally
profligate that their excesses kill every man thrown by
chance upon their shores, and even their own male chil-
dren never attain maturity before they are sexually done
to death. Yet these women are very prolific, producing
many children, male and female. If a native is asked
how this can be, how these females become pregnant
if there are no men, he simply cannot understand such
an absurd question. These women, he will say, destroy
their virginity in all sorts of ways if they cannot get hold
of a man to torture to death. And they have got their
own haloma, of course, to give them children.

I have adduced these mythical instances first, for they
clearly demonstrate the native point of view 5 the need
for perforation, and the absence of any idea concerning

1 Cf. ch. xil, sec. 4.

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PROCREATION AND PREGNANCY

the fertilizing value of the semen. But there are some
convincing present-day instances which show that the
natives believe that a girl can be with child without
previous sexual intercourse. Thus, there are some women
so ugly and repulsive that no one believes that they can
ever have had intercourse (save, of course, for those few
who know better, but who are very careful to keep silent
from shame j see ch. x, sec. 2). There is Tilapo'i, now
an old woman, who was famous for her hideousness in
youth. She has become blind, was always almost an
idiot, and had a repulsive face and deformed body. Her
unattractiveness was so notorious that she became the
subject of a saying: Kwoy Tilafo^i ("have connection
with Tilapo'i"), a form of abuse used in mild chaff (ch.
xiii, sec. 4). Altogether she is an infinite source and pivot
of all kinds of matrimonial and obscene jokes, all based
on the presumed impossibility of being Tilapo'i's lover
or prospective husband. I was assured, over and over
again, that no one ever could have had connection with
her. Yet this woman has had a child, as the natives
would triumphantly point out, when I tried to persuade
them that only by intercourse can children be produced.
Again, there is the case of Kurayana, a woman of
Sinaketa, whom I never saw, but who, I was told, was
"so ugly that any man would be ashamed" to have inter-
course with her. This saying implies that social shame
would be an even stronger deterrent than sexual repul-
sion, an assumption which shows that my informant was
not a bad practical psychologist. Kurayana, as thoroughly
chaste as anyone could be — ^by necessity, if not by virtue —

184

IGNORANCE OF PATERNITY

had no less than six children, five of whom died and one
of whom still survives/

Albinos, male and female, are considered unfit for
sexual intercourse. There is not the slightest doubt that
all the natives feel real horror of and disgust for these
unfortunate beings, a horror perfectly comprehensible
after one has seen specimens of such unpigmented natives
(see pi. 38). Yet there are on record several instances
of albino women who have brought forth a numerous
progeny. "Why did they become pregnant? Is it because
they copulate at night time? or because a haloma has
given them children?" Such was the clinching argument
of one of my informants, for the first alternative appeared
obviously absurd. Indeed, the whole of this line of argu-
ment was volunteered to me in one of my early discus-
sions of the subject, although I obtained confirmatory
data by subsequent research. For as a means of testing
the firmness of their belief, I sometimes made myself
definitely and aggressively an advocate of the truer physi-
ological doctrine of procreation. In such arguments the
natives would quote, not only positive instances, such as
those just mentioned, of women who have children with-
out having enjoyed any intercourse 3 but would also refer
to the equally convincing negative aspect, that is, to the
many cases in which an unmarried woman has plenty of
intercourse and no children. This argument would be
repeated over and over again, with specially telling con-

1 In the already quoted article in the Journal of the Anthropological
Institute, 1916, I did an injustice to Kurayana in stating on p. 412 that
she was the mother of five children only. Six is the correct number, all
produced without the assistance of a man.

185

PROCREATION AND PREGNANCY

Crete examples of childless persons renowned for prof-
ligacy, or of women who lived with one white trader
after another without having any baby.

WORDS AND DEEDS IN TESTIMONY

Although I was never afraid of using a leading ques-
tion, or of eliciting the natives' point of view by con-
tradicting it, I was somewhat astonished at the fierce
opposition evoked by my advocacy of physiological pater-
nity. Only late in my Trobriand career did I find out
that I was not the first to attack this part of native belief,
having been preceded by the missionary teachers. I speak
mainly of the coloured onesj for I do not know what
attitude was taken by the one or two white men who were
in charge of the mission before my time, and those who
came to the islands while I was there only held office
for a short period and did not go into such details. But
all my native informants corroborated the fact, once I
had discovered it, that the doctrine and ideal of Paternity,
and all that tends to strengthen it, is advocated by the
coloured Christian teachers.

We must realize that the cardinal dogma of God the
Father and God the Son, the sacrifice of the only Son and
the filial love of man to his Maker would completely miss
fire in a matrilineal society, where the relation between
father and son is decreed by tribal law to be that of two
strangers, where all personal unity between them is
denied, and where all family obligations are associated

i86

WORDS AND DEEDS

with mother-line. We cannot then wonder that Paternity
must be among the principal truths to be inculcated by
proselytizing Christians. Otherwise the dogma of the
Trinity would have to be translated into matrilineal
terms, and we should have to speak of a God-kadala
(mother's brother), a God-sisterVson, and a divine
halofna (spirit).

But apart from any doctrinal difSculty, the missionaries
are earnestly engaged in propagating sexual morality
as we conceive it, in which endeavour the idea of the
sexual act as having serious consequences to family life is
indispensable. The whole Christian morality, moreover,
is strongly associated with the institution of a patrilineal
and patriarchal family, with the father as progenitor
and master of the household. In short, a religion whose
dogmatic essence is based on the sacredness of the father
to son relationship, and whose morals stand or fall by a
strong patriarchal family, must obviously proceed by con-
firming the paternal relation, by showing that it has a
natural foundation. Only during my third expedition to
New Guinea did I discover that the natives had been
somewhat exasperated by having an "absurdity" preached
at them, and by finding me, so "unmissionary" as a rule,
engaged in the same futile argument.

When I found this out, I used to call the correct
physiological view "the talk of the missionaries," and
goad the natives into comment or contradiction. In this
manner I obtained some of my strongest and clearest
statements, from which I shall select a few.

Motago'i, one of my most intelligent informants, in

187

PROCREATION AND PREGNANCY

answer to a somewhat arrogantly framed affirmation that
the missionaries were right, exclaimed: —

^^Gala walal Isasofast: yamhwata yamhwata
Not at all! They lie: always always

nakubukwahuya momona ikasewo

unmarried girls seminal fluid it is brimful

Utusi gala,^^

children theirs not.

Which may be freely rendered: "Not at all, the mis-
sionaries are mistaken j unmarried girls continually have
intercourse, in fact they overflow with seminal fluid, and
yet have no children."

Here, in terse and picturesque language, Motago'i ex-
presses the view that, after all, if sexual intercourse were
causally connected with child production, it is the un-
married girls who should have children, since they lead
a much more intensive sexual life than the married ones —
a puzzling difficulty which really exists, as we shall see
later on, but which our informant exaggerates slightly,
since unmarried girls do conceive, though not nearly as
frequently as anyone holding the "missionary views"
would be led to expect. Asked in the course of the same
discussion: "What, then, is the cause of pregnancy?" he
answered: "Blood on the head makes child. The seminal
fluid does not make the child. Spirits bring at night time
the infant, put on women's heads — it makes blood. Then,
after two or three months, when the blood [that is,
menstruous blood] does not come out, they know: ^Oh,
I am pregnant!' "

i88

WORDS AND DEEDS

An informant in Teyava, in a similar discussion, made
several statements of which I adduce the two most spon-
taneous and conclusive ones. "Copulation alone cannot
produce a child. Night after night, for years, girls copu-
late. No child comes." In this we see again the same
argument from empirical evidence j the majority of girls,
in spite of their assiduous cultivation of intercourse, do
not bring forth. In another statement the same infor-
mant says: "They talk that seminal fluid makes child.
Lie! The spirits indeed bring [children] at night time."

My favourite informant in Omarakana, Tokulubakiki,
on whose honesty, goodwill, and dispassionate reflection
I could always rely, when I wanted a final test of my
information, gave a clear, though somewhat Rabelaisian,
statement of the native point of view: —

^^Takaytay itokay vivila italagila

We copulate she gets up woman it runs out

fnomona — iwokwo?^

seminal fluid — it is finished.

In other words, after the traces of sexual intercourse
have been removed, there are no further consequences.

These sayings are trenchant enough, as were those pre-
viously quoted 5 but, after all, an opinion is a mere aca-
demic expression of belief, the depth and tenacity of
which can best be gauged by the test of behaviour. To
a South Sea native, as to a European peasant, his domestic
animals — that is, his pigs — are the most valued and cher-
ished members of the household. And if his earnest and
genuine conviction can be seen anywhere, it will be in his

189

PROCREATION AND PREGNANCY

care for the welfare and quality of his animals. The
South Sea natives are extremely keen to have good, strong,
and healthy pigs, and pigs of a good breed.

The main distinction which they make in the matter
of quality is that between the wild or bush-pigs, and the
tame village pigs. The village pig is considered a great
delicacy, while the flesh of the bush-pig is one of the
strongest taboos to people^ of rank in Kiriwina, the trans-
gression of which they hold in genuine horror and disgust.
Yet they allow the female domestic pigs to wander on
the outskirts of the village and in the bush, where they
can pair freely with male bush-pigs. On the other hand,
they castrate all the male pigs in the village in order to
improve their condition. Thus, naturally, all the progeny
are in reality descended from wild bush sires. Yet the
natives have not the slightest inkling of this fact. When
I said to one of the chiefs, "You eat the child of a
bush-pig," he simply took it as a bad jokej for making
fun of bush-pig eating is not considered altogether good
taste by a Trobriander of birth and standing. But he
did not understand at all what I really meant.

On one occasion when I asked directly how pigs breed,
the answer was : "The female pig breeds by itself," which
simply meant that, probably, there is no haloma involved
in the multiplication of domestic animals. When I drew
parallels and suggested that small pigs are brought by
their own balomas, they were not convinced j and it was
evident that neither their own interest, nor the data sup-
plied by tradition, went far enough to inspire any con-
cern as to the procreation of pigs.

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WORDS AND DEEDS

Very important was a statement volunteered to me by
Motago'i: "From all male pigs we cut off the testes.
They copulate not. Yet the females bring forth." Thus
he ignored the possible misconduct of the bush-pigs, and
adduced the castration of domestic hogs as final proof
that intercourse has nothing to do with breeding. On
another occasion, I instanced the only two goats in the
Archipelago, one male and one female, which a trader
had recently imported. When I asked whether the
female would bear any young if the male were killed,
there was no uncertainty about the answer: "Year after
year she will breed." Thus they have the firm conviction
that if a female animal were entirely cut off from any
male of the species, this would by no means interfere with
her fecundity.

Another crucial test is provided by the recent importa-
tion of European pigs. In honour of the first man who
brought them, the late Mick George, a Greek trader
and a truly Homeric character, they are called by the
natives bulukwa Miki (Mick's pigs), and they will give
five to ten of the native pigs in exchange for one of them.
Yet when they have acquired it, they will not take the
slightest precautions to make it breed with a male of the
same superior race, though they could easily do so. In
one instance when, having several small pigs of European
race they castrated all the males, they were reproved by
a white trader, and told that by so doing they lowered the
whole breed. But they simply could not be made to
understand, and all over the district they continue to allow
their valued European pigs to mis-breed.

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PROCREATION AND PREGNANCY

In the article already quoted {Journal of the An-
thropological Institute y 191 6) I gave verbatim a remark
of one of my informants about pigs, obtained early in the
course of my field-work. "They copulate, copulate, pres-
ently the female will give birth." My comment was:
^'Thus here copulation appears to be the u^ula (cause)
, of pregnancy." This opinion, even in its qualified form,
is incorrect. As a matter of fact, during my first visit
to the Trobriands, after which this article was written,
I never entered deeply into the matter of animal procrea-
tion. The concise native utterance quoted above, cannot,
in the light of subsequent fuller information, be inter-
preted as implying any knowledge of how pigs really
breed. As it stands, it simply means that vaginal dilation
is as necessary in animals as in human beings. It also
implies that, according to native tradition, animals are
not subject in this, as in many other respects, to the same
causal relations as man. In man, spirits are the cause of
pregnancy: in animals — it just happens. Again, while the
Trobrianders ascribe all human ailments to sorcery, with
animals disease is just disease. Men die because of very
strong evil magic 3 animals — ^just die. But it would be
quite incorrect to interpret this as evidence that the natives
know, in the case of animals^ the natural causes of
impregnation, disease, and death 3 while in man they
obliterate this knowledge by an animistic superstructure.
The true summary of the native outlook is that they are
so deeply interested in human affairs that they construct
a special tradition about all that is vital for manj while

192

WORDS AND DEEDS

in what concerns animals, things are taken as they come,
without any attempt at explanation, and also without any
insight into the real course of nature.

Their attitude to their own children also bears witness
to their ignorance of any causal relation between congress
and the ensuing pregnancy. A man whose wife has con-
ceived during his absence will cheerfully accept the fact
and the child, and he will see no reason at all for sus-
pecting her of adultery. One of my informants told me
that after over a year's absence he returned to find a
newly born child at home. He volunteered this statement
as an illustration and final proof of the truth that sexual
intercourse has nothing to do with conception. And it
must be remembered that no native would ever discuss
any subject in which the slightest suspicion of his wife's
fidelity could be involved. In general, no allusion is
ever made to her sexual life, past or present. Her preg-
nancy and childbirth are, on the other hand, freely dis-
cussed.

There is another instance of a native of the small
island of Kitava, who, after two years' absence, was quite
pleased to find a few months' old baby at home, and could
not in the slightest degree understand the indiscreet taunts
and allusions of some white men with reference to his
wife's virtue. My friend Layseta, a great sailor and ma-
gician of Sinaketa, spent a long time in his later youth
in the Amphlett Islands. On his return he found two
children, borne by his wife during his absence. He is very
fond of them and of his wife 5 and when I discussed the

193

PROCREATION AND PREGNANCY

matter with others, suggesting that one at least of these
children could not be his, my interlocutors did not under-
stand what I meant.

Thus we see, from these instances, that children born
in wedlock during a prolonged absence of the husband,
will yet be recognized by him as his own children, that is
as standing to him in the social relation of child to father.
An instructive parallel to this is supplied by cases of chil-
dren born out of wedlock, but during a liaison as exclu-
sive as a marriage. In such a case, the physiological father
would be obvious to usj yet a Trobriander would not
recognize the children as his, and further, since for a girl
it is dishonourable to bear children before she is married,
he might refuse to marry her. Of this I had a good
example: Gomaya, one of my early informants, whom
we know already (ch. iv, sec. 6), had a liaison with a girl
called Ilamweria (pi. 39). They lived together and were
going to be married, but she became pregnant and gave
birth to a girl, whereupon Gomaya abandoned her. He
Was quite convinced that she had never had any relations
with another boy, so, if any question of physiological
fatherhood had come into his mind, he would have ac-
cepted the child as his own, and married the mother.
But, in accordance with the native point of view, he simply
did not inquire into the question of fatherhood 3 it was
enough that there was prenuptial motherhood.

Thus of children borne by a married woman, her hus-
band is the father ex officio^ but for an unmarried mother,
there is "no father to the child." The father is defined
socially, and in order that there may be fatherhood there

194

FATHERLESS CHILDREN

must be marriage. And traditional sentiment regards
illegitimate children, as we have said, as improper on the
part of the mother. Of course there is no implication of
sexual guilt in this censure, but, to the native, to do wrong
is simply to act contrary to custom. And it is not the
custom for an unmarried girl to have babies, although
it is the custom for her to have as much sexual intercourse
as she likes. When asked why it is considered bad, they
will answer: —

^^Pela gala tamala^ gala taytala bikofoH^^
\ "Because no father his, no man he [who] might take
[it] in his arms."

"Because there is no father to the child, there is no
man to take it in his arms." In this locution, the correct
definition of the term tamala is clearly expressed: it is
the mother's husband, the man whose role and duty it
is to take the child in his arms and to help her in nursing
and bringing it up.

FATHERLESS CHILDREN IN A MATRILINEAL SOCIETY

This seems a convenient place to speak about the very
interesting problem of illegitimate children, or, as the
natives word it, "children borne by unmarried girls,"
"fatherless children." Several questions must, no doubt,
have already obtruded themselves on the reader. Since
there is so much sexual freedom, must there not be a great
number of children born out of wedlock? If this is not
so, what means of prevention do the natives possess? If

195

PROCREATION AND PREGNANCY

it is so, how do they deal with the problem, what is the
position of illegitimate children?

As to the first question, it is very remarkable to note
that illegitimate children are rare. The girls seem to
remain sterile throughout their period of licence, which
begins when they are small children and continues until
they marry j when they are married they conceive and
breed, sometimes quite prolifically. I express myself cau-
tiously about the number of illegitimate children, for in
most cases there are special difficulties even in ascertain-
ing the fact. To have prenuptial children is, as I have
said, by an arbitrary ruling of doctrine and custom, con-
sidered reprehensible. Thus, out of delicacy towards
people present, out of family interest or local pride, the
existence of such children is invariably concealed. Such
children are often adopted by some relative, and the
elasticity of kinship terms makes it very difficult to dis-
tinguish between actual and adopted children. If a mar-
ried man says, "This is my child," it may quite easily
be his wife's sister's illegitimate baby. So that only an
approximate estimate can be made even in a community
with which one is very well acquainted. I was able to
find roughly a dozen illegitimate children recorded
genealogically in the Trobriands, or about one per cent.
In this the illegitimate children of the ugly, deformed, or
albino women mentioned above are not included, as none
of them happens to figure in the genealogical records
made by me.

Thus we are faced with the question: Why are there

196

FATHERLESS CHILDREN

so few illegitimate children? On this subject I can only
speak tentatively, and I feel that my information is per-
haps not quite as full as it might have been, had I con-
centrated more attention upon it. One thing I can say
with complete confidence: no preventive means of any
description are known, nor the slightest idea of them
entertained. This, of course, is quite natural. Since the
procreative power of seminal fluid is not known, since it is
considered not only innocuous but beneficent, there is
no reason why the natives should interfere with its free
arrival in the parts which it is meant to lubricate. In-
deed, any suggestion of neo-Malthusian appliances makes
them shudder or laugh according to their mood or tem-
perament. They never practice coitus interrupuSy and
still less have any notion about chemical or mechanical
preventives.

But though I am quite certain on this point, I cannot
speak with the same conviction about abortion, though
probably it is not practised to any large extent. I may say
at once that the natives, when discussing these matters,
feel neither fear nor constraint, so there can be no question
of any difficulties in finding out the state of affairs because
of reticence or concealment. My informants told me that
a magic exists to bring about premature birth, but I was
not able either to obtain instances in which it was per-
formed, or to find out the spells or rites made use of.
Some of the herbs employed in this magic were mentioned
to me, but I am certain that none of them possess any
physiological properties. Abortion by mechanical means

197

PROCREATION AND PREGNANCY

seems, in fine, the only effective method practised to check
the increase of population, and there is no doubt that even
this is not used on a large scale.

So the problem remains. Can there be any physio-
logical law which makes conception less likely when
women begin their sexual life young, lead it indef atigably,
and mix their lovers freely? This, of course, cannot be
answered here, as it is a purely biological question j but
some such solution of the diiiiculty seems to me the only
one, unless I have missed some very important eth-
nological clue. I am, as I have said, by no means con-
fident of my researches being final in this matter.

It is amusing to find that the average white resident or
visitor to the Trobriands is deeply interested in this sub-
ject, and in this subject only, of all the ethnological prob-
lems opened to him for consideration. There is a belief
prevalent among the white citizens of eastern New
Guinea that the Trobrianders are in possession of some
mysterious and powerful means of prevention or abortion.
This belief is, no doubt, explicable by the remarkable
and puzzling facts which we have just been discussing.
It is enhanced by insufficient knowledge, and the tendency
towards exaggeration and sensationalism so characteristic
of the crude European mind. Of insufficient knowledge,
I had several examples 3 for every white man with whom
I spoke on the subject would start with the dogmatic
assertion that unmarried girls among the Trobrianders
never have children, saving those who live with white
traders 5 whereas, as we have seen, illegitimate children
are on record. Equally incorrect and fantastic is the

198

FATHERLESS CHILDREN

belief in mysterious contraceptives, for which not even the
oldest residents, who are firmly convinced of their ex-
istence, can supply any basis in fact. This seems to be
an example of the well-known truth, that a higher race
in contact with a lower one has a tendency to credit the
members of the latter with mysterious demoniacal powers.
Returning now to the question of "fatherless children,"
we find among the Trobrianders a trend of public opinion
with regard to illegitimacy which almost amounts to a
moral rule. We, in our own society, share this opinion
very emphatically j but with us it is connected with our
strong moral condemnation of unchastity. In theory at
least, if not in practice, we condemn the fruits of sexual
immorality, because of the cause and not because of the
consequence. Our syllogism runs thus: "All intercourse
out of wedlock is bad 3 pregnancy is caused by intercourse 5
hence all unmarried pregnant girls are bad." Thus, when
we find in another society the last term of the syllogism
endorsed, we jump to the conclusion that the other terms
also obtain, especially the middle one. That is, we as-
sume that the natives are aware of physiological paternity.
We know, however, that the first proposition is not ac-
cepted in the Trobriands, for intercourse out of wedlock
is quite free from censure unless it offends the special
taboos of adultery, exogamy, and incest. Therefore the
middle term cannot serve as a connecting link, and the
fact that the natives endorse the conclusion proves nothing
about their knowledge of fatherhood. I have developed
this point in some detail, because it is a characteristic
example of how difficult is emancipation from our own

199

PROCREATION AND PREGNANCY

narrow modes of thinking and feeling, and our own rigid
structures of social and moral prejudice. Although I
myself should have been on my guard against such traps,
and though at that time I was already acquainted with
the Trobrianders and their ways of thinking, yet, on
realizing their disapproval of children out of wedlock, I
went through all this false reasoning before a fuller
acquaintance with the facts forced me to correct it.

Fecundity in unmarried girls is discreditable j sterility
in married women is unfortunate. The same term
nakange {na, female prefix, karige^ to die) is used of a
childless woman as of a barren sow. But this condition
brings no shame on the person concerned, and does not
detract from the social status of such a woman. The
oldest wife of To'uluwa, Bokuyoba, has no children, yet
she ranks first among the wives as is the due of her age.
Nor is the word nakange considered to be indelicate; a
sterile woman will use it when speaking of herself, and
others will apply it to her in her presence. But fertility
in married women is considered a good thing. Primarily
it affects her maternal kinsmen, and is a matter of great
importance to them (see ch. i, sec. i). '^The kinsmen
rejoice, for their bodies become stronger when one of their
sisters or nieces has plenty of children." The wording
of this statement expresses the interesting conception of
collective clan unity, of the members being not only of
the same flesh, but almost forming one body (see ch. vi
and ch. xiii, sec. 5).

Returning again to the main trend of our argument,
it must be noted that the scorn and disapproval levelled

200

FATHERLESS CHILDREN

at illegitimacy is highly significant sociologically. Let
us realize once more this interesting and strange constel-
lation of facts: physical fatherhood is unknown j yet
fatherhood in a social sense is considered necessary and
the "fatherless child" is regarded as something anom-
alous, contrary to the normal course of events, and hence
reprehensible. What does this mean? Public opinion,
based on tradition and custom, declares that a woman
must not become a mother before she marries, though she
may enjoy as much sexual liberty as she likes within
lawful bounds. This means that a mother needs a de-
fender and provider of economic necessities. She has one
natural master and protector in her brother, but he is not
in a position to look after her in all matters where she
needs a guardian. According to native ideas, a woman
who is pregnant must, at a certain stage, abstain from all
intercourse and "turn her mind away from men." She
then needs a man who will take over all sexual rights
in regard to her, abstain from exercising even his own
privileges from a certain moment, guard her from any
interference, and control her own behaviour. All this the
brother cannot do, for, owing to the strict brother-sister
taboo, he must scrupulously avoid even the thought of
anything which is concerned with his sister's sex. Again,
there is the need for a man to keep guard over her during
childbirth, and "to receive the child into his arms," as
the natives put it. Later it is the duty of this man to
share in all the tender cares bestowed on the child (see
ch. i, sees, i and 3 j and ch. xiii, sec. 6). Only when the
child grows up does he relinquish the greater part of his

2QX

PROCREATION AND PREGNANCY

authority and hand it over to his wife's brother, retaining
some of it in the case of female children, when it comes
to marriage (see above, ch. iv).

Thus the part played by the husband is strictly defined
by custom and is considered socially indispensable. A
woman with a child and no husband is an incomplete and
anomalous group. The disapproval of an illegitimate
child and of its mother is a particular instance of the gen-
eral disapproval of everything which does not conform to
custom, and runs counter to the accepted social pattern
and traditional tribal organization. The family, consist-
ing of husband, wife, and children, is the standard set
down by tribal law, which also defines the functions of
its component parts. It is therefore not right that one of
the members of this group should be missing.

Thus, though the natives are ignorant of any physio-
logical need for a male in the constitution of the family,
they regard him as indispensable socially. This is very
important. Paternity, unknown in the full biological
meaning so familiar to us, is yet maintained by a social
dogma which declares: "Every family must have a
father 5 a woman must marry before she may have chil-
dren ^ there must be a male to every household."

The institution of the individual family is thus firmly
established on a strong feeling of its necessity, quite com-
patible with an absolute ignorance of its biological foun-
dations. The sociological role of the father is established
and defined without any recognition of his physiological
nature.

202

SOCIOLOGICAL PATERNITY

THE SINGULAR CLAIMS OF SOCIOLOGICAL PATERNITY

The interesting duality between matrilineal and patri^
archal influences, represented by the mother's brother
and the father respectively, is one of the leitmotifs of
the first act of Trobriand tribal life. Here we have come
to the very core of the problem: for we see within this
social scheme, with its rigid brother-sister taboo and its
ignorance of physical fatherhood, two natural spheres of
influence to be exercised over a woman by a man (see
ch. i, sees, i and 2) : the one, that of sex, from which
the brother is absolutely debarred and where the hus-
band's influence is paramount j the other, that in which
the natural interests of blood relationship can be safe-
guarded properly only by one who is of the same blood.
This is the sphere of the woman's brother.

By the brother's inability to control or to approach,
even as a distant spectator, the principal theme in a
woman's life — ^her sex — a wide breach is left in the sys-
tem of matriliny. Through this breach the husband
enters into the closed circle of family and household, and
once there makes himself thoroughly at home. To his
children he becomes bound by the strongest ties of per-
sonal attachment, over his wife he assumes exclusive
sexual rights, and shares with her the greater part of do-
mestic and economic concerns.

On the apparently unpropitious soil of strict matriliny,
with its denial of any paternal bond through procreation

203

PROCREATION AND PREGNANCY

and its declaration of the father's extraneousness to
progeny, there spring up certain beliefs, ideas and cus-
tomary rules, which smuggle extreme patrilineal prin-
ciples into the stronghold of mother-right. One of these
ideas is of the kind which figures so largely in sensa-
tional amateur records of savage life, and it strikes us
at first as savage indeed, so lop-sided, distorted and quaint
does it appear. I refer to their idea about the similarity
between parents and offspring. That this is a favourite
topic of nursery gossip in civilized communities needs no
special comment. In a matrilineal society, such as the
Trobriands, where all maternal relatives are considered
to be of the "same body," and the father to be a
^^stranger," we should have no doubt in anticipating that
facial and bodily similarity would be traced in the
mother's family alone. The contrary is the case, how-
ever, and this is afiirmed with extremely strong social
emphasis. Not only is it a household dogma, so to speak,
that a child never resembles its mother, or any of its
brothers and sisters, or any of its maternal kinsmen, but
it is extremely bad form and a great offence to hint at any
such similarity. To resemble one's father, on the other
hand, is the natural, right, and proper thing for a man
or woman to do.

I was introduced to this rule of savoir vivre in the usual
way, by making a faux fas. One of my bodyguard in
Omarakana, named Moradeda, was endowed with a
peculiar cast of features which had struck me at first
sight and fascinated me, for it had a strange similarity to
the Australian aboriginal type — ^wavy hair, broad face,

2Q±

SOCIOLOGICAL PATERNITY

low forehead, extremely broad nose, with a much de-
pressed bridge, wide mouth with protruding lips, and a
prognathous chin. One day I was struck by the appear-
ance of an exact counterpart to Moradeda, and asked his
name and whereabouts. When I was told that he was my
friend's elder brother, living in a distant village, I ex-
claimed: "Ah, truly! I asked about you because your
face is alike — alike to that of Moradeda." There came
such a hush over all the assembly that I was startled by it
at once. The man turned round and left usj while part
of the company present, after averting their faces in a
manner half-embarrassed, half -off ended, soon dispersed.
I was then told by my confidential informants that I had
committed a breach of custom ^ that I had perpetrated
what is called tafutaki migilay a technical expression re-
ferring only to this act which might be translated: "To-
defile-by-comparing-to-a-kinsman-his-face" (see ch. xiii,
sec. 4). What astonished me in this discussion was that,
in spite of the striking resemblance between the two
brothers, my informants refused to admit it. In fact,
they treated the question as if no one could possibly ever
resemble his brother, or, for the matter of that, any
maternal kinsman. I made my informants quite angry
and displeased with me by arguing the point, and even
more so by quoting cases of such obvious similarity be-
tween two brothers as that which obtained between
Namwana Guya'u and Yobukwa'u (pi. 40).

This incident taught me never to hint at such a re-
semblance in the presence of the people concerned. But
I thrashed the matter out with many natives subsequently

205

PROCREATION AND PREGNANCY

in the course of general conversation. I found that every-
one in the Trobriands will, in the teeth of all the evi-
dence, stoutly deny that similarity can exist between
matrilineal kinsmen. A Trobriander is simply irritated
and insulted if striking instances are pointed out to him,
in exactly the same way as, in our own society, we irritate
our next-door neighbour by bringing before him a glaring
truth which contradicts some cherished opinion, political,
religious, or moral, or which, still worse, runs counter to
his personal interests.

The Trobrianders maintain that mention of such like-
nesses can only be made to insult a man. It is, in fact,
a technical phrase in serious bad language to say migim
lumuta, "Thy face thy sister's," which, by the way, is the
worst combination of kinship similarity. This expression
is considered quite as bad as "have intercourse with thy
sister!" But, according to a Trobriander, no sane and
decent man can possibly entertain in a sober dispassionate
mood such an outrageous thought as that anyone should
in the slightest degree resemble his sister (see ch. xiii,
sec. 4).

Still more remarkable is the counterpart to this social
dogma j namely, that every child resembles its father.
Such similarity is always assumed and affirmed to exist.
Where it is really found, even to a small degree, constant
attention is drawn to it as to a thing which is nice, good
and right. It was often pointed out to me how strongly
one or other of the sons of To'uluwa, the chief of Omara-
kana, resembled his father, and the old man was especially
proud of the more or less imaginary resemblance between

206

SOCIOLOGICAL PATERNITY

himself and his youngest son, Dipapa (see pi. 41 ). Espe-
cially were the five favourite sons of himself and Kadam-
wasila each said to be exactly like his father. When
I pointed out that this similarity to the father implied
similarity to each other, such a heresy was indignantly
repudiated. There are also definite customs which em-
body this dogma of patrilineal similarity. Thus, after
a man's death, his kinsmen and friends will come from
time to time to visit his children in order to "see his face
in theirs." They will give them presents, and sit looking
at them and wailing. This is said to soothe their insides
because they have seen once more the likeness of the dead.
How do the natives reconcile the inconsistency of this
dogma with the matrilineal system? When questioned
they will say: "Yes, maternal kinsmen are the same flesh,
but similar faces they have not." When you inquire
again why it is that people resemble their father, who is
a stranger and has nothing to do with the formation of
their body, they have a stereotyped answer: "It coagulates
the face of the child j for always he lies with her, they
sit together." The expression kuliy to coagulate, to
mould, was used over and over again in the answers which
I received. This is a statement of the social doctrine
concerning the influence of the father over the physique
of the child, and not merely the personal opinion of my
informants. One of my informants explained it to me
more exactly, turning his open hands to me palm up-
wards: "Put some soft mash {sesa) on it, and it will
mould like the hand. In the same manner, the husband
remains with the woman and the child is moulded." An-

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PROCREATION AND PREGNANCY

other man told me: "Always we give food from our hand
to the child to eat, we give fruit and dainties, we give
betel nut. This makes the child as it is."

I also discussed the existence of half-castes with my
informants, children of white traders married to native
women. I pointed out that some look much more like
natives than like Europeans. This, again, they simply
denied, maintaining stoutly that all these children have
white men's faces, and giving this as another proof of
their doctrine. There was no way of shaking their con-
viction, or of diminishing their dislike of the idea that
anyone can resemble his mother or her people, an idea
condemned by the tradition and the good manners of the
tribe.

Thus we see that an artificial physical link between
father and child has been introduced, and that on one
important point it has overshadowed the matrilineal bond.
For physical resemblance is a very strong emotional tie
between two people, and its strength is hardly reduced
by its being ascribed, not to a physiological, but to a soci-
ological cause — that of continued association between hus-
band and wife.

I have to record one more important assertion of
father-right in this matrilineal society, one of a purely
social and economic nature. That there is a compromise
between the two principles of matriliny and paternal
influence in social and economic matt?ers, we have already
seen 5 but it is worth while to restate this briefly here, and
to mention its most peculiar feature.

The matrilineal principle is maintained by the more

208

SOCIOLOGICAL PATERNITY

rigid rules of tribal law. These rules decree absolutely
that a child must belong to the family, sub-clan, and clan
of its mother. Less absolutely but still very strictly, they
regulate the membership of a village community and the
office of magician. They also assign all inheritance of
land, privileges and material goods to mother-line. But
here a number of customs and usages allow, if not an
evasion, at least a compromise and modification of tribal
law. By these usages, a father can, for his own lifetime,
grant the right of citizenship in his village to his son
and bestow upon him the usufruct of canoes, lands, cere-
monial privileges, and magic. By cross-cousin marriage,
combined with matrilocal residence, he can even secure
all these things to his son for life.

All this we know already, but here we have td note one
more important difference in the transmission of material
goods and privileges, as from maternal uncle to a nephew
on the one hand, and a father to a son on the other. A
man is obliged to relinquish all his possessions and offices
to his younger brother or maternal nephew at death. But
usually the younger man wants to possess some of these
things during his senior's lifetime 3 and it is customary for
a maternal uncle to part with a portion of his gardens
or some of his magic while he is still living. But in such
cases he has to be paid for it, and the payment is often
quite substantial. It is called by the special technical
name pokala.^

When a man gives any of these things to his son, on

1 This word has more than one meaning: it denotes several types of
economic transaction. Compare ArQonauts of the Western Pacific, index
s.v. pokala.

209

PROCREATION AND PREGNANCY

the other hand, he does it of his free will, and quite
gratuitously. Thus, a maternal nephew, or younger
brother, has the right to claim his share, and always re-
ceives it if he gives the first instalment of the fokala.
The son relies on his father's goodwill, which, as a rule,
works very effectively on his behalf, and he receives all
the gifts for nothing. The man who has the right to the
things has to pay for them, while the man who receives
them without the sanction of tribal law gets them gratis.
Of course he has to return them, at least in part, after his
father's death j but the use and enjoyment he has had
of material benefits remain his, while the magic he cannot
return.

The natives explain this anomalous state of things by
the father's partiality to his children, which, in its turn,
is accounted for by his relation to their mother. The
natives say that his free gifts to the children are a reward
for the free cohabitation which he enjoys with his wife.^

1 1 have dealt with the relation between tribal law and the usages
which are formed in reaction to it in Crime and Custom, esp. pt. ii, ch. iii.

210

CHAPTER VIII

PREGNANCY AND CHILDBIRTH

We had to make a digression into the domain of soci-
ology, led thereto by the Trobriand beliefs concerning
procreation and spiritual incarnation and the great in-
fluence which these exert upon family and kinship. Let
us now resume our consecutive account by considering the
course of pregnancy and childbirth. In the first two
sections of this chapter I shall describe one observance
which is of outstanding interest to the ethnologist: the
special public ceremonial performed when a woman is
passing through her first pregnancy. The succeeding two
sections will be devoted to the customs associated with
childbirth and maternity in general.

PREPARATION FOR THE FIRST PREGNANCY RITES

Pregnancy is first diagnosed by the swelling of the
breasts and the darkening of the nipples. At this time
a woman may dream that the spirit of one of her kins-
women brings her the child from the other world to be
reincarnated. If during the next two or three moons her
menstrual flow makes no appearance, then, say the natives,
it is certain that she has become pregnant (isuma).
Native embryology teaches that four moons after the ap-

211

PREGNANCY AND CHILDBIRTH

pearance of the haloma in the dream the abdomen begins
to swell 3 and when this stage in a first pregnancy is
reached, the relatives of the mother-to-be take steps to
provide her with certain ceremonial garments prescribed
by custom 5 a plain white fibre petticoat, and a long cloak
{saykeulo) of the same material (pi. 42). These will be
given to her in about the fifth moon of her pregnancy
with a great deal of ceremony, and she will wear them on
that occasion for a month or two and also after she has
given birth to the child. This ceremony is never per-
formed for an igamugwa^ a woman who has already been
pregnant, but only for an igava^Uy a woman who conceives
for the first time.

As with every other ceremonial occasion in the Trobri-
ands, this presentation of the fibre cloak has its place in
a definite sociological scheme. The duties connected with
it are distributed among certain relatives who subsequently
receive an appropriate payment. The task of making the
robes and of offering them to the igava^u falls to the
female relatives of the girPs father — the women whom
she calls generically tahugu — and the lead is taken by
the father's own sister. We have already seen on an
earlier occasion of great importance in the life of a girl,
namely when her marriage is about to be concluded, that
it is the father, and not her official guardian, the mother's
brother, whose consent is decisive and who has to super-
vise the whole affair. Again, in this later crisis, it is the
father and his matrilineal kinswomen who take the active
part. The father summons his sister, his mother, and his
xiiece, and says to them: "Well, come to my house and cut

212

FIRST PREGNANCY RITES

the saykeulo for your niece, my daughter." The father's
sister then takes the lead, and rouses as many of her kins-
women as possible to help in the work. They come to-
gether, talk the matter over, and arrange when they will
begin. The saykeulo is always made in front of the
father's house, or, if he be a chief, on the central place
of his village. The women sit down in a wide circle round
a heap of banana leaves to which every worker has con-
tributed several bundles, frayed ready for use. Then the
pieces are bound together, amid continuous chatter and a
hubbub of voices and laughter. It is an exclusively fe-
male gathering, and no man with any sense of decency
and etiquette would come near. Four garments have to
be made: two long mantles and two skirts. One of the
mantles is to be worn at the initial celebration of first
pregnancy and the second when the mother first appears
in public after her confinement 3 the two skirts are also for
use after the birth. The four garments can be easily
finished at one sitting, though a second is sometimes
necessary when there are too many gossips present for the
work to go quickly. When the garments are finished,
usually in the afternoon, the workers pass to the magical
part of the performance. For, as always in the making
of a really important object, or one which has to be en-
dowed with definite properties and powers, magic is an
essential part of the process of production.

I had good opportunities for studying the magic of
pregnancy robes. I observed and photographed the rites
in progress at the village of Tukwa'ukwa, and in the same
village I obtained the formula of saykeulo magic, as it

213

PREGNANCY AND CHILDBIRTH

was then recited, also I discussed the ceremonial with the
actual performers, as well as with women in other lo-
calities.

The rite is simple, but interesting, for it reveals the
native ideas of the nature of magical force and of the
way in which it operates. A mat is spread on the ground
and the four pregnancy garments are placed upon it (pi.
43 ) . The women have brought with them the fleshy lower
parts of certain creamy white leaves, which come from a
lily plant bearing a snow-white flower. These are cut
into pieces (pi. 44) and strewn over the robes. Those
among the robe-makers who know the formula — and
there are always several of them — kneel round the
bundle, and, bending over it, thrust their faces right into
the fibre stufiF (pi. 43), so that it may be well permeated
with the breath which carries the magic words :

"O bwaytuva (a bird similar to the reef heron but
with quite white plumage), hover over Waybeva (the
creek of Tukwa'ukwa village), swoop down to Mkikiya
(the waterhole of the village) ! O bwaytuva y hover over
Mkikiya, swoop down to Waybeva!"

This is the exordium {u*ula)^ the opening part of the
magical formula, in which, as we see, a white bird is in-
vited to hover over the bathing place and the principal
water supply of the village.^ Then follows the main part
{ta'pwana) of the spell. In this the phrase bwaytuva
ikata — "the bwaytuva bird sharpens" (i.e. makes brilliant
or resplendent) — is repeated with various words, each of

1 For the structure and general characteristics of the Trobriand spells
see Argonauts of the Western Pacific, ch. xviii.

214

FIRST PREGNANCY RITES

which describes a part of the pregnancy robe. In the
Trobriandsj as no doubt in every other society, each detail
of a lady's garment is carefully defined and has its
specific name. These are enumerated and coupled one
by one with the leading phrase. Thus the formula con-
tains a series of such incantations as "the hwaytuva bird
makes resplendent the top hem of the robe," "the hway-
tuva bird makes resplendent the fringe of the robe," and
so on. Then the same phrase is repeated with various
words describing parts of the body: "the hwaytuva bird
makes resplendent the head of my tahu (my brother's
child)," "the hwaytuva makes resplendent the nose of my
brother's child" j and so on to the cheeks, the chest, the
belly, the groins, the buttocks, the thighs, the knees, the
calves, and the feet. The formula thus enumerates every
part of the body with a consistent pedantry characteristic
of Trobriand magic. The end-part {dogina) runs thus:
"No more is it her head, her head is like the pallor
before dawnj no more is it her face, her face is like the
white sprouts of a young leaf of the areca plant 5 praise
her by robbing Jher house! praise her by demanding a
tilewaH (flattery gift)!"

This formula expresses, in terms of magic, a wish to
improve the personal appearance of the wearer of the
robes, and it is especially associated with the whiteness
of her skin. A bird of beautiful form and of brilliantly
white plumage is invoked at the beginning, and its name
acts as the most powerful charm in the principal part of
the formula. Its association with the names of the creek
and the waterhole in which the pregnant woman has ta

2IJ

PREGNANCY AND CHILDBIRTH

bathe and wash, may possess the power to whiten her skin.

The conclusion anticipates the result, a form very
common in the Trobriand spells: the face of the pregnant
woman becomes pallid like the white sky before dawn, and
like the young sprouts of areca. The last two sentences
of the formula refer to the curious custom which allows
anyone who gives flattery or praise after a remarkable
achievement or performance and removes a piece of
decoration as a pledge, to demand a special gift, tile^d*L
In the case of a still more remarkable achievement, the
lucky man who is to gain by it may have to see all his
belongings on which the members of the community can
lay hand kwaykwaya — that is, "taken away as expression
of admiration." The remarkable achievement thus fore-
shadowed in the first pregnancy rites is the resplendent
whiteness of the pregnant woman's skin.

From another village — Omarakana — I obtained the
initial fragment of the magic used there by certain women.
In this formula also a bird is addressed:

"O white pigeon, come, lull our pregnancy cloak to
sleep. I shall go and lull your egg to sleep."

The pigeon invoked is notable for the whiteness of its
plumage and of its egg's shell. The "lulling" of the
pregnancy cloak refers, it is said, to the child to be born,
whose skin should also be made white. We shall have
to speak at some length about this fundamental idea of
whitening the skin which underlies the pregnancy cere-
monial.

In their general character, the proceedings are similar
to most rites in the Trobriands. The women finish the

2l6

CEREMONIAL OF PREGNANCY

robe and then, in very much the same business-like
manner, go on to the magic. The white lily leaves are
cut by one of them immediately after the robe is finished
(pi. 44), and the garment is spread on the mat by another.
While the magic is being recited (pi. 43), no disturbing
noises are allowed, but neither is anyone excluded 3 the
onlookers adopt no special attitude, nor have they any
observances to keep. After the women have impregnated
the robes with the magical virtues of the spell, they beat
the bundle with their palms. This increases the garments'
power of imparting whiteness to the wearer. The tap-
ping is conceived as the "waking up of the garment."
The rite is called yuvisila saykeulo^ the breathing over of
the pregnancy robe. The four robes, together with the
white cut leaves strewn over them, are now covered with
another mat, so that the magic may not evaporate, and
the whole bundle is placed in the house of the principal
tahulay the father's sister.

CEREMONIAL OF FIRST PREGNANCY

On the day following the making and charming of the
robe, the actual investment of the pregnant woman takes
place. With this is associated her public bathing and
washing and her magical adornment. I shall describe
the ceremony as I saw it in the village of Tukwa'ukwa,
where, in May, 191 8, I and my friend, the late Mr.
B. Hancock, were able to take photographs of it (pis. 43,
44, 45, 46, 49, and 50). My friend had also photo-

217

PREGNANCY AND CHILDBIRTH

graphed and recorded the ceremony about a year before
when it had taken place in the same village (pis. 42, 47,
and 48). In the course of my narrative, I shall indicate
such local differences as obtain between the coastal vil-
lages, of which Tukwa'ukwa is one, and the inland set-
tlements, distant from the seashore.

Very early in the morning, the whole village, or at
least all its female inhabitants, are astir and preparing
for the spectacle. The tabula (father's sister and other
paternal relatives) forgather in the father's hut, where
the pregnant woman awaits them. When all is ready,
the prospective mother proceeds to the seashore, walking
between two of her tabula.

From the inland villages not too far distant from the
sea, the procession would also go down to the beach j but
those villages far enough away to consider themselves
"inland people" perform the pregnancy bath at the water-
hole where they usually wash. If the woman is of high
rank, she will be carried all the way to the shore or to the
waterhole. In the ceremony, only women take an active
part.

Tukwa'ukwa lies right on a tidal inlet of the lagoon,
and the woman was carried to the beach by her female
tabula. Since this is a purely female ceremony, good
manners indicate that no man should participate, and men
would not enter the water to look at the performance.
There is no specific taboo, however, nor were any objec-
tions raised to my presence.

Arrived at the water's edge, the women arrange them-
selves in two rows, facing each other, and join hands with

218

CEREMONIAL OF PREGNANCY

their opposite partners crosswise, in the manner called by
children "queen's chair." Over this living bridge the
pregnant woman walks, holding on by the women's heads,
and as she advances, the rear couple move to the front,
constantly extending the bridge. Thus they go some dis-
tance into the water, the pregnant woman walking dry
foot on the arms of her companions (pi. 45). At a cer-
tain point she is allowed to jump into the water. Then
they all begin to play with one another, the prospective
miother being always the centre of the game. Her com-
panions splash water over her, and duck and drench her
to the utmost, all in a spirit of exuberant good-natured
playfulness (pi. 46). It is the duty of the tabula to see
that the woman is well washed during the ceremonial
bath. "We rub her skin with our hands, we rub her sur-
face, we cleanse her."

The drenching and washing being thoroughly done,
she is brought on to the shore and placed on a mat. Al-
though on most occasions she is carried by her relatives
to the beach, from this moment she has to be completely
isolated from the earth, and must not touch the soil with
her feet. She is placed on a coconut mat and her tabula
(father's maternal relatives) proceed to make her toilet
very carefully and with an elaborate magic ritual. This
magic of beauty has certain affinities with the ceremonial
performed by men during the kula expeditions (see Ar-
gonauts of the Western Pacific y ch. xiii, sec. i), though
the spells of men and women differ.^ It is, on the other

II have stated in the above-mentioned work, on p. 336, that "This
branch of Kula magic has two counterparts in the other magical lore of
the Trobrianders. One of them is the love magic, through which people

219

PREGNANCY AND CHILDBIRTH

hand, identical in spell and rite with the beauty magic
performed by women on men at great dancing festivals j
in fact, the spells which I obtained at the pregnancy rites
and which are given later in this book, are used on either
occasion (see ch. xi, sees. 2-4).

After her bath, the pregnant woman has first to be
rubbed and dried. This is done ritually. Some coconut
husk fibre, which is kept ready at hand, is charmed over
with the kaykakaya spell by the tabula (father's sister)
and the skin of the young woman is rubbed.^ Then some
of the soft spongy leaves of the wageva plant, which
usually serve the native as a natural towel, are charmed
with another formula and the woman is rubbed again.
After her skin has been thoroughly dried, the pregnant
woman is anointed with charmed coconut oil, and the
attendants put a new brightly coloured fibre skirt on her,
while the wet bathing skirt is removed from underneath.
This festive skirt is not one of those recently made for
the pregnancy, nor is its putting on associated with any
magical rite. But a purely magical action follows: the

are rendered attractive and irresistible. Their belief in these spells is
such that a man would always attribute all his success in love to their
efficiency. Another type closely analogous to the beauty magic of the
Kula is the specific beauty magic practised before big dances and fes-
tivities." This statement is slipshod, in that the real counterparts of
mnuasila {kula magic) of beauty are the magic performed on dancers and
described here in ch. xi, and the magic of pregnancy with which we are
dealing just now. The three forms, miuasila, pregnancy rites and festive
beauty magic are, in fact, akin to each other, though only pregnancy
magic and the festive ritual are the same in spell and rite, while the
mnvasila resembles both only in aim and doctrine. Love magic, though
presenting some similarities, not only differs profoundly in rite and spell,
but is based on a special native doctrine. (Cf. below, ch. xi.)

1 For the text of this and the subsequent spells here mentioned, see
below, ch. xi, sec. 3 and 4. The spells of mivasila, quoted on pp. 337-342
of Argonauts, should also be consulted.

220

CEREMONIAL OF PREGNANCY

face of the young woman is stroked with a mother-of-
pearl shell while one of the tabula mutters a spell of
beauty (see ch. xi, sec. 4). The three acts of the cere-
monial so far described are supposed to make her skin
smooth, clear, and soft, and her appearance generally
beautiful. Several successive stages of personal decoration
follow, each performed in a ritual manner. First, mut-
tering a magical formula, a tabula decorates the prospec-
tive mother's mouth and face with red paint. After that
black paint is applied to the face with another spell.
Then the hair is combed while yet another formula is
recited. Red hibiscus flowers are fastened in her hair,
and aromatic leaves with charms breathed into them
thrust into her armlets. After this the young woman is
considered to be fully arrayed.

All this ritual dressing and adornment is associated
with beauty magic, which custom and tradition impose at
this stage but which stands in no direct connection with
pregnancy or the pregnancy robes. Only when this
beauty magic has been performed may the proper preg-
nancy rite, the investment with the long robe, be car-
ried out. The tabula place one of the two saykeulo (preg-
nancy robes) on the young woman's shoulders, and once
more recite the formula used in the making of it, breath-
ing the charm right into the robe (see pi. 47). It is also
customary at this point, though not imperative, to recite
over her some magic against the dangers of pregnancy
and childbirth, a magic prophylactic against the special
evil of sorcery, which is always dreaded at a confinement
(see next section).

221

PREGNANCY AND CHILDBIRTH

Throughout this ritual the prospective mother has been,
standing on a mat, for, as we have already said, her bare
feet must not touch the soil after the bath. Now, dressed
in full dress and covered with the long fibre mantle, she
is lifted up by two of her tabula (pis. 48 and 49) and
carried to her father's house, where a small platform has
been erected on which she is set down (pi. 50). It is
customary for a woman of chieftain's rank to go, not to
her father's, but to her maternal uncle's house, and there
to remain seated on a high platform.

Upon this platform the woman has to stay for the
rest of the day. During that time she must remain prac-
tically motionless, she must not speak except to ask for
food or drink, and even this she ought if possible to do
by signs. She must not touch food with her hands 5 it is
put into her mouth by her tabula. Her immobility is only
broken from time to time that she may wash her face,
her arms and shoulders, and rub her skin. For this pur-
pose water is either brought to her in a wooden basin by
her husband, or she is carried by two women back to the
water's edge, and there she washes standing on a mat.
After sunset she is allowed to retire to her father's house
to rest, but the next day she has to return to the platform
and there resume her seated immobility, and observe all
her taboos as on the first day. This is repeated for from
three to five days, according to the rank and importance
of the woman and of her husband. Nowadays, with the
relaxation of all customs, one day is often considered long
enough.

When the ceremonial vigil on the platform is over, the

222

CEREMONIAL OF PREGNANCY

woman may return for a few more months to her hus-
band's house J or she may go to the house of her father
or of her maternal uncle. To one of these she must in
any case repair for her confinement. She dresses in the
saykeulo (pregnancy mantle) until it is worn out. As a
rule it lasts for about two months, so that it has to be
discarded some two months before confinement.

There is more than one important feature associated
with the first pregnancy ritual. As always in the Tro-
briands, ceremonial services rendered by a certain class of
relative must be repaid by the actual, that is maternal,
kinsmen of the person served. In this case the work, the
magic, and the ritual are performed by the female rela-
tives of the father. In the distribution of food {sagali)^
which immediately follows the ceremony, it is the moth-
er's brother, the brother, and the other maternal kinsmen
of the young woman, who do the distributing. If she is
a woman of small importance, this distribution takes place
before her father's house. But if she, or her father or
husband, be a person of high rank, it is carried out on the
central place of the village. The procedure is the same
as in the mortuary and other ceremonial distributions.''
The food is divided into heaps and every heap is allotted
to a single person, his or her name being called out in a
loud voice. After the first pregnancy rites, each one of
the tabula who has been working at the robe and taking
part in the ceremony receives a heap of food. Besides
this, the givers of the sagali (distribution) usually select

1 See Argonauts of the Western Pacific, pp. 182-3, and references in
Index, s.v. sagali, and below, ch. xi, sec. 2.

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PREGNANCY AND CHILDBIRTH

some specially large and fine yams, or a bunch of bananas
or areca nut, and carry the gift to the house of the pa-
ternal aunt, and perhaps to those of one or two other
relatives as well. Such additional payment is called
"pemkwala,

A minor but very interesting ceremonial is associated
with this distribution. The father of the pregnant woman
— ^who has nothing to do with the sagali — chooses some
specially good food and carries it, on his own account, to
certain women who are known to possess a form of black
magic of which pregnant women stand in great fear.
"Black" this magic is, literally as well as metaphorically,
for by addressing the mwanita (black millepede), the sor-
ceress is able to make a pregnant woman's skin black, as
black as the worm itself. The father's gift, which is
brought to the house door and belongs to the class called
katubwadela hwala (house-closing-gift), is intended to
forestall and arrest any evil intentions which the sorceress
might harbour. As one of my informants put it: "That
their anger might come to an end, that they might not
perform the evil magic that blackens the skin of that
woman, that pregnant one."

This brings us back to the question of the idea under-
lying the first pregnancy ceremony, and of its aims and
purpose. If the average Trobriander is asked the reason
or cause, u^uluy of a custom, the usual ready answer is one
of the stereotyped phrases, tokunabogwo ayguri ("of old
it has been ordained"), Laha^ lay ma ("it came from
Laba'i," the mythological centre of the district), tom-
wayay tomwayay ivagise ("the ancients have arranged it").
In other words, the custom has in their eyes a traditional

224

CEREMONIAL OF PREGNANCY

sanction 3 and every respectable person among savages, as
well as among ourselves, has, of course, to do a thing
because it is done and because it always has been done.
But I obtained a certain number of special reasons for
this particular usage besides the general one. Some main-
tain that the ceremony makes for a quick and easy birth j
"for," as they say, "the playing about in the water loosens
the child in the womb." Some say that it assures the
health of the mother and of the baby 3 and yet others that
it is necessary for the proper formation of the foetus.
One woman gave as the reason for the ceremony, that the
spirit child was said to enter the woman while she was in
the ritual bath, but her statement was not confirmed by
anyone else, and I consider it spurious.

But the prevalent opinion of the natives is that the
ceremony is to whiten the skin of the woman. This
opinion wp:6 expressed to me by my best informants among
the mer., as well as by several women with whom I dis-
cussed the matter. It is also in harmony with the text of
the magical formula and with the ritual actions, as well
as with the nature of the central symbol, the pregnancy
mantle. The use of the saykeulo, as my informants
pointed out, is to keep the sun off the skin. The woman
has to wear it after the ceremonial bathing, and when
she has had to discard it she should keep indoors as much
as possible until the confinement. This idea of whiteness
as a thing to be desired is also expressed in the main
ceremony of first bathing, and in the subsequent ritual
washings, which the pregnant woman continues until her
confinement and after it.

It is impossible to get beyond the idea that whiteness

225

PREGNANCY AND CHILDBIRTH

as such is desirable. One thing is clear, however. Al-
though whiteness of the skin is usually regarded as a
personal attraction, in this case the woman is not made
white in order to be erotically seductive. When I asked
why a pregnant woman must try to make her skin white,
I received the answer: "I£ a woman does not wash and
anoint, and if her skin is black, people will say this woman
is very bad, she has men in her mind, she does not look
after her confinement." Again they would say, explain-
ing the motive for the whole ceremony: "This is done
to prepare her skin for the confinement washings j and to
make her desire to be white. Thus we see when her skin
is white that she does not think about adultery." From
another informant I received the statement: "The say-
keulo covers her up completely: breasts, legs, backj only
her face you see. It makes her skin white, it shows she
does not have connection with men." Thus the woman
is made white and beautiful by all this magic. Yet she
must hide her charms, she must not attract other men,
and she has to keep more stringently faithful than at any
other time of her wedded life. Nay, as will be seen, she
must even abstain from lawful intercourse with her hus-
band.

CUSTOMS OF PREGNANCY AND CONFINEMENT

In the foregoing section the ceremony of first preg-
nancy was described. Now we proceed to the customs of
pregnancy and confinement in general. The ritual bath-
ing, the ceremonial investment with the pregnancy man-

226

PREGNANCY AND CONFINEMENT

tie, the magic o£ whiteness and of beauty, are only per-
formed before the first child is born. But making the
skin as white as possible by ordinary means, including the
use of the mantle, is a feature of every pregnancy. On
subsequent occasions the mantle is made by the woman
herself or it may be given by a tabula and repaid by her,
but as a private transaction only.

Some five months after conception, that is at the time
of the ritual bathing in a first pregnancy, the prospective
mother begins to observe certain food restrictions. She
must abstain from what the natives call kavaylu^a (deli-
cacies which consist mainly of fruit) . The banana, the
mango, the malay apple, the South Sea almond, the paw-
paw, the bread-fruit, and the natu fruit are forbidden to
her. This taboo has reference to the future health of the
child. "If she eat kavaylu^ay the child will have a big
belly 5 it will be full of excrement and will soon die."
The diet of a pregnant woman is henceforth reduced to
the staple vegetable food {kaulo)j that is yams, taro, na-
tive peas, sweet potatoes, and other produce of the gar-
den. She is also allowed to eat meat and fish, but she
must abstain from certain kinds of the latter. The fish
which she is forbidden to eat are such species as live in
the submarine holes of the coral. The natives say that
just as it is difficult to haul these fish out of their hiding
places, so the baby would not easily be brought forth.
Fish with sharp, pointed and poisonous fins, which are on
that account dangerous to the fishermen, are taboo to the
pregnant woman. If she were to eat any of them the
child would be ill-tempered and constantly wailing. As

227

PREGNANCY AND CHILDBIRTH

pregnancy progresses and the woman becomes big, sexual
intercourse must be abandoned, for, as the natives say,
"the penis would kill the child." This taboo is rigorously
observed.

Otherwise the pregnant woman leads a normal life
almost up to the time of her confinement. She works in
the garden, fetches water and firewood, and cooks the
food for the household. She has but to shield herself
from the sun by wearing the saykeulo (pregnancy man-
tle), wash frequently, and anoint herself with coconut
oil. Only towards the close of pregnancy when the first
saykeulo is worn out and discarded, must she keep out of
the sun and therefore abandon some of the heavier work.

As in a first pregnancy, so in all the subsequent ones,
the woman, about the fifth month, has to take up her
abode in her father's house and she may remain there or
she may return again to her husband's house until some
time before the confinement, when she invariably goes to
the house of her parents or maternal uncle. This re-
moval to the father's or mother's brother's house is a rule
observed in every childbirth, the woman leaving her hus-
band's house in about the seventh or eighth month of her
pregnancy.

This custom is associated with the strong fear of the
dangers which surround a woman in childbed, and which
are conceived to be due to a form of evil magic, which is
called vatula bam (the chilling or paralysing of the
uterus). And again, in the face of this great danger, we
see once more the interesting recrystallization of kinship
ties, the shifting of responsibility and solidarity. Here,

228

PREGNANCY AND CONFINEMENT

again, only the actual maternal kinsmen and kinswomen
are, in the eyes of custom and tribal law, regarded as re-
liable. The woman has to go to her father's house, for
that is also her mother's home, and her mother is the
proper person to look after her and the baby. The
mother also is concerned in warding off danger with the
help of her male relatives, who forgather at the house
of the birth and see to it that a proper watch {yausa) is
kept over the lying-in. Such a watch, kept by men armed
with spears who sit all the night long over fires and guard
the house and its every approach, is considered the main
defence and precaution against sorcerers who, surrounded
by nocturnal birds, are supposed to prowl about, attempt-
ing to cast the valuta bam magic. Primarily, it is the duty
of the husband to carry out the yausa^ but in this he is
never trusted alone, and the male relatives of the preg-
nant woman not only assist but also control him. The in-
teresting thing about this form of sorcery is that it does not
only exist in the fear and superstition of the natives, but
that it is actually attempted and carried out by male sor-
cerers. The formula is recited, the house approached, and
the evil charm cast according to the prescribed rites.^ I
have even obtained the spells of this magic and the cura-
tive counter spells, but as this question essentially belongs
to the subject of sorcery, I shall reserve it for a future
publication.

When her time approaches, the parental house is made

^ Cf. the difference between the purely imaginary witchcrart of the
flying women (yoyo'va) and the sorcery really carried out by the male
wizards {bivaga'u), Argonauts of the Western Pacific, ch. ii, sec. vii, and
ch. X, sec. i ; and ch. ii of this book

229

PREGNANCY AND CHILDBIRTH

ready. The father and all the male inmates have to
leave, while some female kinswomen come in to assist the
mother. When the first pains are felt, the woman is
made to squat on the raised bedstead with a small fire
burning under it. This is done "to make her blood
liquid," "to make the blood flow." At the critical mo-
ment the woman in labour and her attendants may repair
to the bush, where confinement is sometimes allowed to
take place, but more usually they remain in the house.

About the actual travail, I have been able to obtain
only the following information. The woman in labour is
seated on a mat placed on the ground, with her legs apart
and her knees raised. Leaning back, with her hands on
the ground behind her, she rests her weight on her arms.
At her back stands her sister or some other close maternal
relative, who bears heavily on the labouring woman's
shoulders, pressing down and even thumping her vigor-
ously. As the natives say: "This woman presses on the
parturient one so that the baby may fall out quickly."
The mother of the woman in travail waits to receive the
baby. Sometimes she catches hold of her daughter's
knees. A mat is placed in position, and on this the newly
born is received. I was told that the baby is allowed to
come to birth by means of natural efforts only, and that
it is never pulled out or manipulated. "The child will
fall on to the mat, there it lies, then we take it. We do
not take hold of it before." The parturient woman tries
to help on the process by stopping her breath and so
bearing down on the abdomen.

If the labour is very hard they ascribe the fact, of

230

PREGNANCY AND CONFINEMENT

course, to the evil magic o£ the valuta ham and they sum-
mon someone who knows the vlvlsa (curative formula) to
counteract this evil. This is recited over the aromatic
leaves of the kwebila plant, and the body of the woman
is rubbed with them. Or else the charmed leaves are
placed on her head and then thumped with the fist. Only
in the most difficult cases and when the vivisa has proved
ineffective would the child be manipulated, and even then,
from what I gathered, very timidly and incompetently.
If the afterbirth does not come out in due course, a stone
is tied to the mother's end of the navel string. The
vivisa (curative formula) is then recited over it, and the
woman made tc\ stand up. If that does not help, they
are at their wit's end, and the woman is doomed, as they
do not know how to extract the afterbirth by manipula-
tion. The natives were very much astonished when they
saw how Dr. Bellamy, who for several years had been
medical officer in the Trobriands, used to remove the
afterbirth.^

Some three days after the birth, one of the tabula
(paternal kinswomen) of the mother of the new-born
child heats her fingers at a fire and kneads off the re-
maining piece of the navel string near to the baby's ab-
domen. This and the afterbirth are buried in the ground
within the garden enclosure. Underlying the custom is
a vague idea that it will make the new-born a good gar-
dener, that it will "keep his mind in the garden." After
the removal of the umbilical cord, the child may, though

1 This information I received independently from Dr. Bellamy, at that
time Assistant Resident Magistrate and Medical Officer of the district^
and from the natives.

231

PREGNANCY AND CHILDBIRTH

it need not, be carried out of the house. The mother has
to remain for a month or so confined within the parental
hut. Soon after the delivery, a string is twisted by the
tabula and tied round the mother's chest. Some magic
is associated with this, but unfortunately I never learnt
what it was nor ascertained the meaning of the ceremony.

MOTHER AND CHILD

Mother and baby spend the greater part of their time
during the first month on one of the raised bedsteads with
a small fire underneath. This is a matter of hygiene, as
the natives consider such baking and smoking to be very
beneficial for the health, and a sort of prophylactic
against black magic. No men are allowed into the house,
for, since the woman baked over the fire is usually naked,
no male should enter 3 but there are no supernatural sanc-
tions for the custom, nor is any serious harm done if the
taboo should be broken. After a month or so a miagic
is performed called vageda kayfwakova; flowers of the
white lily are burned with some dry wood, while the
charm is spoken, and the woman is covered with the
smoke of the smouldering faggot. This is done on two
days in succession, and is supposed to make her skin still
whiter. I did not obtain the formula of this magic. On
the third day, the tabula ritually wash the young mother,
and rub her skin with leaves charmed by the beauty spell
used in the corresponding rite during the first pregnancy
ceremony.

232

MOTHER AND CHILD

The woman then goes out with the baby and makes the
round of the village, receiving from friends and her
father's relatives small gifts of food called va^otu. After
she has finished the round, there is a mimic driving home
{ibutusi) of her by the tabula (her maternal aunt and
other relatives of the same ci^ss\ and here she has to re-
main for another month in seclusion.

During this time husband and wife may only speak
together through the door and glance at each other now
and then. On no account must they eat together or even
partake of the same food. Sexual intercourse between
them is strictly taboo for a much longer time, at the least
until the child can walk. But the stricter rule is to abstain
from intercourse until it is weaned — that is, some two
years after its birth — and this stricter rule is said always
to be observed by men in polygamous households. The
husband, even one who has several wives, must abstain
from all conjugal or extraconjugal intercourse until the
baby and its mother go out for the first time. A breach
of any of these rules is said to bring about the death of
the child. In the case of illegitimate children also, if
the mother copulates too soon, the child is sure to die.

After the second seclusion, mother and child return to
their own household, and the mother resumes her normal
life, although much of her time is taken up with the
baby. She wears a plain fibre skirt, two of which have
been made for her by her tabula if this has been her first
pregnancy. She also now wears the long mantle, saykeuloy
the second of the two made for her by the tabula before
the first pregnancy (pi. 51). If it is a second pregnancy,

PREGNANCY AND CHILDBIRTH

or if the baby is illegitimate, the skirt and the mantles
are made by herself or privately by a relative, and are
as a rule much shorter (see pi. 90). Also a young mother
frequently wears a sort of maternity cap, called togebiy
which is often made by twisting a small grass fibre petti-
coat into a sort of turban/ Into her armlets she must
insert a bundle of aromatic herbs {yana).

The most important of the cares bestowed on the child
is, of course, concerned with its feeding. Besides the
mother's breast which, as I was told, but very seldom
fails, the child is given other food almost from the first
days. Taro, well boiled, is chewed by the mother or by
some of her relatives, and the mash, called mememay is
given to the infant. The natives think that the child
would be too weak if it were restricted to its mother's
milk. Chewed yams and fish are not given till much
later, when the child is almost a year old. The child's
head is smeared with coconut oil mixed with charcoal "to
make the head strong" as the natives say. One measure
of cleanliness is observed day after day from the first
hours of the baby's life: it is bathed regularly in warm
water, with which the mother also washes her own skin.
A specially deep wooden platter, called kaykwaywosiy is
used for this purpose. The water is warmed by throwing
stones heated in the ashes into the platter. Thus a hot
and somewhat alkaline water is prepared, and this daily
washing, followed by an anointing with coconut oil, is
said to keep the skin of the mother and child white. The

1 Togebi is the general name for plaited discs or folded petticoats worn
on the head as a support for baskets and other loads carried by women
(cf. ch. i, sec. 3, and pi. 6).

234

MOTHER AND CHILD

weaning of the child takes place long after birth, usually
some two years or, as the natives put it, "when it is able
to say clearly bakam ba/mom (I want to eat, I want to
drink)."

During the weaning the child is separated from the
mother, and sleeps with its father or with its paternal
grandmother. When it cries at night a dry breast is given
to it, or some coconut milk. If it is fretful and loses
condition, it is taken to some distant village where it has
relatives, or from inland villages to the seaside, so that it
may regain its normal health and good spirits.

We have now brought the child up to the time when
he will shortly join his playmates in the small children's
world of the village. In a few years he will begin his
own amorous life. Thus we have closed the cycle which
runs through infantile love-making, youthful intrigues,
settled liaison, marriage, and its results in the production
and rearing of children. This cycle I have described in
its main outline, giving special consideration to the socio-
logical aspects as seen in prenuptial intercourse, marriage,
kinship ideas, and the interplay of mother-right and pa-
ternal influence. In the following chapters it will be
necessary to describe certain side-issues and psychological
aspects, concerned more particularly with the erotic life
before marriage.

235

CHAPTER IX

CUSTOMARY FORMS OF LICENCE

We must now return to certain aspects of love-making,
which had to be left out or barely touched upon in relat-
ing the life history of the native. The facts described in
chapter iii have shown us that, subject to certain restric-
tions, everyone has a great deal of freedom and many
opportunities for sexual experience. Not only need no
one live with impulses unsatisfied, but there is also a wide
range of choice and opportunity.

But wide as are the opportunities of ordinary love-
making for a Trobriander, they do not exhaust all the
possibilities of erotic life. In addition, seasonal changes
in village life and festive gatherings stimulate sexual in-
terest and provide for its satisfaction. Such occasions, as
a rule, lead to intrigues beyond the limits of the village
community j they loosen old ties and establish new ac-
quaintanceships j they bring about short passionate affairs,
which sometimes develop into more stable attachments.

Traditional usage allows, and even encourages, such
extensions of ordinary erotic life. And yet we shall see
that, though countenanced by custom and public opinion,
they are felt to be an excess, to be something anomalous.
Usually they produce a reaction, not in the community
as a whole, but in the individuals offended by them.^

1 For a discussion of such licensed yet resented usages, see Crime and
Custom, part ii.

CUSTOMARY FORMS OF LICENCE

Some excesses — those, that is, which really deserve the
name of orgiastic licence — are limited to one district
alone, and are viewed by the other natives as quaint local
anomalies j while those who practise them are proud, and
at the same time ashamed of them. Even the common
and outwardly decorous relaxations are considered as
escapades and adventures, always to be planned in the
penumbra of secrecy, and often resented, if not avenged,
by the regular partners.

It has seemed best to divide the description of native
sexual life into two parts, and to treat these separately.
The normal maturing of the sexual impulse and its issue
in matrimony had to be dealt with first. The facts which
illustrate how the impulse is given a wider range, how
it strays beyond the local group of everyday acquaint-
ances and leads athwart home-made intrigues, will be
given in this and the following chapters.

This division corresponds to the native point of view,
and makes it possible to present the facts in a far truer
perspective than if they were lumped together. But the
two parts are closely connected, and the way in which
they fit into each other will be evident in the account
which follows.

I shall begin with a description of those occasions which
regularly, in the course of each year, stimulate erotic in-
terest, and at the same time provide wider opportunities
for its satisfaction. There are certain seasonal and pe-
riodical games 5 there are arrangements for picnics, excur-
sions, and bathing parties j there are customary festivities
associated with the economic cycle, and finally there is the
annual season of festivities.

237

CUSTOMARY FORMS OF LICENCE

THE EROTIC ELEMENT IN GAMES

Throughout the year, there is a periodic increase in
play and pleasure -seeking at full moon. When the two
elements so desirable in the tropics, soft light and bracing
freshness are combined, the natives fully respond: they
stay up longer to talk, or to walk to other villages, or to
undertake such enterprises as can be carried out by moon-
light. Celebrations connected with travel, fishing, or
harvesting, as well as all games and festivals, are held at
the full moon. In the ordinary course of tribal life, as
the moon waxes, the children, who always play in the
evening, sit up later and band together to amuse them-
selves on the central place of the village. Soon the young
boys and girls join them, and, as the moon grows fuller,
the maturer youth, male and female, is drawn into the
circle of players. Gradually the smaller children are
squeezed outj and the round games and competitive
sports are carried on by youths and grown-ups. On spe-
cially fine and cool nights of full moon, I have seen the
whole population of a large village gathered on the cen-
tral place, the active members taking part in the games,
with the old people as spectators.

The younger men and women, however, are the main
players, and the games are associated with sex in more
than one way. The close bodily contact, the influence
of moonlight and shadow, the intoxication of rhythmic
movement, the mirth and frivolity of play and ditty —

238

EROTIC ELEMENT IN GAMES

all tend to relax constraint, and give opportunity for an
exchange of declarations and for the arrangement of
trysts. In this book we are chiefly concerned with the
erotic element in games, but in order not to lose the right
perspective, it must be realized that this is but one aspect
of them. Children's play and adult games often contain
no such element, and in none of them is it the only in-
terest, or even the chief inducement to participation.
Love of athletics, the need for exercise, competition, dis-
play of skill and daring, aesthetic satisfaction and a sense
of fun, are each quite as important as the sexual element.
The games which are played on moonlit evenings on
the central place of the village are perhaps the most im-
portant of all. They usually begin with a round game
of "ring-a-ring-a-roses" type, called Kasaysuya (pi. 52).^
Boys and girls join hands and sing, while they move first
slowly and then, with the quickening rhythm of the chant,
spin round faster and faster, until, tired out and giddy,
they stop, rest, and begin again in the reverse direction.
As the game progresses, and one ditty follows another,
the excitement grows. The first ditty is one which begins
with the words, ^^kasaysuya^ saysuya^^ referring to a bush
after which the game is named. Each time they start on
a new round, a new ditty is chanted. The rhythm in song
and step is at first slow, grows rapidly quicker, and ends
in a swift staccato repetition of the last syllables as the

1 This and the following illustrations (pis. 52-6) were taken whilst the
children and youths were demonstrating the details of the games. The
actual performances take place always after nightfall, and could not be
photographed. The difference consists mainly in the presence of spec-
tators, who are not to be seen in these illustrations.

239

CUSTOMARY FORMS OF LICENCE

players whirl round and round. Towards the end of the
game usually the rhymes become rather ribald.

These are examples of such kasaysuya ditties with
sexual allusions:

Taytulaviya, viya, taytulaheulay heula (repeated)

furious taytu, stout taytu

Kavakayviyakuy kwisi tau^a^u

Enormous penis (of) men

Isisuse wa bwayma.

They sit in food-house.

Toyatalaga fofu

Fornicator excrement.

Free Translation

O, the rapidly growing taytu yams, O, the stout taytu
yams.

Men with enormous penises sit on the food-house plat-
forms

(i.e. keep away from women) — they are pederasts!

Imayase la kaykivi

They bring his soliciting message (of)

tokaka^u (repeated).

widower.

Ifayki nakaka^u.

He [she] declines widow.

240

EROTIC ELEMENT IN GAMES

Ikaraboywa kwila tokaka^u.

It remains idle penis (of) widower.

Free Translation

They brought her the invitation to lie with him from

the widower —
But the widow refused.
So the widower's penis had to remain idle!

This ditty, I was told, would be sung if a widower
were present, especially if he were too enterprising in his
amorous offers, or if he misdirected them. It would also
be sung if a woman wanted to stimulate his interest and
encourage him.

Ill

Yokwamiga tau^a^u fniyawimi sayduwaku.

You indeed men your pubic leaves duwaku piece.

Saydukufiy kufi.

Short piece, short.

Galaga takakaya kukwpi.

No indeed we fornicate short (things).

Free Translation

O men you use dtdfuoaku strips for your pubic leaves:

They are short strips, far too short!

Nothing so short will induce us to fornicate with you!

Yokwamiga vivilaga midahemi siginanabuy

You indeed women indeed your skirts (a flimsy leaf),

241

CUSTOMARY FORMS OF LICENCE

SiginafatUy fatu,

(Flimsy leaf) narrow, narrow.

Galagay takakaya fatu.

No indeed we fornicate narrow (holes).

Free Translation

O women, you use the siginanabu leaves for your skirts:

They are narrow leaves.

Nothing so narrow will induce us to penetrate you.

The two chants are counterparts of one another, and
show the typical kind of joke made about the dress of
the other sex. My informant stated emphatically that
they mean simply: ^^Gala takayta kaykukufi kwila — gala
takayta kwayfatu wila,^ "We do not copulate (with one
having) a short penis, we do not copulate (with one hav-
ing) a narrow cunnus."

Yokwamiga giyovila kaynufisi nunimiga.

You indeed women of rank small your breasts indeed.

Kaykawala mitasiga gweguyaga.

Impressionable their eyes men of rank indeed.

Kamilogi habawa^

Your copulating support earthen mound,

kamiyaguma

your lime-pots

hix)ey kwey kwe,
(make) kwe, kwe, kwe.

242

EROTIC ELEMENT IN GAMES

Free Translation

O women of rank, your breasts are small indeed,
But the eyes of men of rank are lecherous.
You copulate on the ground, and while you do that, your
lime-pots produce a rattling sound kuoey kwey kwe.

Social games always begin with this rhythmic running
in a circle. Other figure games follow, in several of
which only two people participate. Thus, a boy will put
his feet on one of the thighs of another boy or man, who,
standing up and holding him by the hands, swings in a
circle (pi. 53)5 or two boys sit facing each other with the
soles of their feet together, get a good grip on a stick,
held between them, and try to lift each other ofiF the
ground. This is a form of "cock-fighting." Most of the
games, however, are played by many people j sometimes
they are very conventionalized and remote imitations of
serious pursuits, and sometimes they represent the be-
haviour of animals. Thus in "Dog's Tail," two rows of
boys face each other, and move to left and right 5 in
^^Rats" a row of boys squat and hop one after another
(pi. 54); in "Cooking Pot," boys in the same position
move slowly from one foot to the other 5 in "Fishing of
Kuboya," boys advance in single file, the last one being
caught by two who stand on either side with raised arms
and let the others pass (pi. SS)* In this last we find the
elements of our "Oranges and Lemons." More elabo-
rate figures are enacted in "Stealing of the Bananas,"
*^The Parrot," and "The Fire." All these games with-

243

CUSTOMARY FORMS OF LICENCE

out exception are accompanied by rhymes which are sung
sometimes at the beginning, sometimes right through the
game, and sometimes, as in "Bananas," at appropriate
moments in the action. In none of these games ^s there
any direct erotic element, but they all provide oppojfyu-
nities for contact and for the handling of one another, io^-
teasing and an exchange of jokes. In contest games, such
as "Rats," "Dog's Tail," and "Fishing," only boys take
part as a rule. In the more elaborate games, such as
"Fire," "Bananas," and "Parrot," both sexes participate.

GAMES INVOLVING PHYSICAL CONTACT

This, also, is the invariable rule in the following games,
which admit of even more intimate physical contact. The
sina game forms part of the bathing ritual in the preg-
nancy ceremony, and has been described in the previous
chapter. In the village, boys and girls play it together.
There is also a game in which the players stand in a long
chain holding hands, and then walk, reciting a chant,
round the person who stands at one end. This end re-
mains immovable and the person at the other end leads
the chain round in gradually narrowing circles until the
whole group is pressed together into a tight knot. The
fun of the game consists in squeezing the knot very
tightly. It is then unrolled gradually by reversing the
motion faster and faster, till at the end the others run
round and round the fixed end until the chain breaks.
Another game begins by two of the players sitting back

244

GAMES WITH PHYSICAL CONTACT

to back 5 two more sit between the legs o£ each, serving as
a support, and then two more between the legs of the
second pair, and so onj and so seated they sing and begin
to push backwards j the row which pushes the other one
out of position wins. In both these games, close prox-
imity lends itself to the preliminaries of love-making.

The favourite and most important game is a tug-of-
war, bi^u (literally pulling). A long stout creeper is cut
and an equal number of players, each standing behind
another, take, hold of either half of the creeper 5 usually
the game starts somewhere in the middle of the village
place {haku). When all are in position, one side recites
half the ditty, the other responds with the second half,
and as the recital ends they begin to tug. Sometimes it
is men against women j sometimes by accident or prefer-
ence, the sides are mixed. Never is there any division
according to clan, though kinship taboos between men
and women are always observed, so that brother and
sister, for instance, never stand near each other. Each
side strives to "get the other going," and the real fun
begins when one side proves itself the stronger and drags
the other. A great deal of roughness is displayed in this
game, also a considerable amount of disregard for any
damage done to houses, young trees, or domestic objects
lying about. When it is played in the form of a kayasUy
a competitive arrangement of which we shall speak pres-
ently, houses, yam stores, and young trees are said to be
destroyed and people are sometimes injured.

The main interest in these competitive games of
strength and skill lies in the game itself 3 but many of

245

CUSTOMARY FORMS OF LICENCE

the players make use of them for erotic purposes. Not
only does physical proximity allow of certain intimacies
not otherwise possible, but, as we shall see later, it is in-
dispensable for the exercise of some forms of love-magic.

Late at night, usually as a climax to the other games,
the natives play "Hide and Seek" (supeponi). When
this game is played on a large scale, the sides start from
the central place, but hide outside in the weyka, the vil-
lage grove (pi. sQ' As a rule the sexes divide, women
and men hiding alternately. When one player finds
another he has to chant a ditty in a loud voice. Those
who are not found for a long time, return by themselves,
each singing a special phrase, as he or she arrives at the
meeting-place. As with the tug-of-war, this game is
extremely popular, and the sexual motive is without
doubt partly responsible for this. Couples will arrange
to look for each other or to meet at some particular place,
and it is easy to see how well this game is designed for
trysts, though probably such are mainly of a preliminary
nature. It is accordingly not considered proper for mar-
ried women to join in "Hide and Seek."

On fine days the boys and girls will often arrange an
excursion to some favourite spot. Usually they take
food and cook it on a beach, or among the coastal rocks,
or at some specially attractive waterhole. Sometimes they
combine the excursion with fruit-gathering, fishing, or
bird-trapping. At such times lovers will walk apart for
greater intimacy. In the season of sweet flowering plants
and trees they gather blossoms, adorn each other with

246

SEASONS OF LOVE

garlands, and even with paint, and thus aesthetically cele-
brate the occasion.

On hot days in the season of calm weather, boys and
girls repair to the beach, to waterholes, and to creeks,
where they engage in bathing games. Each game has its
stereotyped action and its special name 5 and most of them
are accompanied by a chant. The players swim and dive
in groups j or stand in a row, chanting a ditty, and, as it
ends, fall backwards into the water and swim away on
their backs. Again, they stand in a ring, facing inwards,
sing a few words, and then splash one another. There
is a game which commemorates an old legend about the
change of a man into a dugong. They also know the use
of the surfboard and amuse themselves with it on the
open sea-beach.

It is diiEcult to say exactly how far an erotic interest
enters into these games. As in all the other games, so
far described, the observer can see nothing in the slightest
degree indecorous, but from conversations with natives
and from their personal confidences, it is clear that amo-
rous intrigues frequently start on such occasions. The
splashing often passes into wrestling, and water games
present the human body in a fresh and stimulating light.

SEASONS OF LOVE AND FESTIVITY

The games on the central village place are played, for
the most part, between May and September, the cool
season of the trade winds. There are no bathing games

247

CUSTOMARY FORMS OF LICENCE

in these months, as a strong wind blows during the mid-
day hours. Water games are most popular in the hot
seasons between the dry and the rainy weather, from
February to May, and during October and November.
These latter months — the spring of the Southern Hemi-
sphere, and, in the Trobriands, the calm season following
the dry months of the trade winds — are also the time
of harvest celebrations.

Harvest time is one of joy and social activity, of con-
stant visits between the communities, of competition, dis-
play, and mutual admiration. Each village must send
out its parties of boys and girls, with gifts of food. They
wear a special dress, put aromatic leaves into their arm-
lets and flowers into their hair, and a few lines of paint
upon their faces. The girls put on a new fibre petticoat
(pi. 6i), the boys a fresh pubic leaf. At times the cen-
tral place is crowded with such harvest carriers (pi. 57).
Such festive visits are an occasion for making new ac-
quaintances and for a display of personal beauty, and thus
lead to intrigues between members of different commu-
nities.^ All the harvest customs favour erotic pursuits —
visits to other villages and the added freedom, the gay
mood and the care taken in personal adornment. After
sunset, on the pretext of visiting the gardens, parties of
boys and girls amuse themselves in other villages, return-
ing home late at night. The fervour of these activities
increases towards the full moon.

1 For the sociological and economic systems which underlie the distri-
bution of the crops at harvest and the gifts between villages, see my
article in The Economic Journal, March, 1921, and ch. vi of Argonauts
of the Western Pacific.

248

SEASONS OF LOVE

The harvest period is directly followed by the mlla-
mday the annual feast associated with the return of an-
cestral spirits to the village/ The inaugural ceremony is
held at a certain full moon, and is followed by a month
of dancing which reaches its climax at the next full moon.
On the last few days before full moon, certain solemn
celebrations are held, dances in full dress are performed,
and offerings made to the spirits of the departed. The
whole interest of the community is concentrated on these
final celebrations. Men and women are intent on pro-
ducing an effect of lavishness, on doing honour to their
ancestral spirits and thus to themselves, and in general on
achieving that renown {hutura) so dear to the heart of
the Trobriander. The dances during this time are never
directly associated with sex, but they serve to establish the
fame of good dancers and thus to add to their personal
:harm. On the night after the full moon, the spirits are
ceremonially driven away from the villages, and all danc-
ing stops.

A period of quieter festivity follows the milamala^ that
of the karibom. After the evening meal, the village
drummers, standing in the centre of the village place
{baku)j beat out a slow rhythm. Soon children, old men
and women, youths and maidens, assemble in the central
place and begin to walk round it. There is no special step,
no complicated rhythm j only a slow, regular, monoto-
nous walk. Such karibom walking takes place also in the

1 For a detailed description of beliefs and practices associated with the
mtlamala see my articles, "Baloma, the Spirits of the Dead in the Tro-
briand Islands," in Journal R. Anthrop. Inst., 1916, and "Lunar and Sea-
sonal Calendar," ibid., 1927. Cf. also ch. xi, sec. 2, of this book.

249

CUSTOMARY FORMS OF LICENCE

earlier stages of the milamala month, to be replaced to-
wards its end by regular dancing.

The slow rhythmic walk of the kanhom is to a great
extent a social promenade. In place of the single file of
the ordinary dance, two or three people walk abreast j
conversation is allowed and free choice in the matter of
partners. An old man or woman will be seen leading a
grandchild by the hand or carrying it. Women, some-
times with babies at the breast, gossip together, and lovers
walk arm-in-arm. Since the karibom usually falls on
dark, moonless evenings, it lends itself to erotic ap-
proaches even more than the ordinary games, and con-
siderably more than the regular dancing. There are a
number of modes of erotic attack which can be practised
during the karibom by a boy walking immediately behind
the object of his fancy. From this position he can clasp
her breasts, a proceeding which, as the natives say, is use-
ful in stimulating her erotic interest, and is also a condi-
tion of certain forms of love-magic. Or else he may hold
certain aromatic herbs under her nose, the smell of which,
by its own virtue alone or by this enhanced with magic,
exercises a powerful erotogenous effect. Or, if he be
enterprising and his desire strong, he may, parting the
fringe of her grass skirt, insert a finger in her vulva.

During the whole period of this festival, but more espe-
cially during the first part, the milamala^ visits between
communities take place. Sometimes these visits are offi-
cial and ceremonial, as when one community is invited by
another to admire a newly acquired dance, or to sell one
of their own to it. A special term laga is applied to the

250

SEASONS OF LOVE

sale of dances and one or two other privileges and titles/
For such an occasion, the whole community, with its head-
man and best dancers, moves in a body to the other vil-
lage and there ceremonially performs the dance, instruct-
ing the purchasers in its intricacies (pi. 58). The visit
is always returned. Large gifts (ya^otu) are associated
with such visits, and have, as always, to be returned in an
equivalent form. But sometimes groups of youths and
maidens, boys and girls, will go from one village to an-
other for their private pleasure, and join in the local
karlhom (slow rhythmic walking). In this way new ac-
quaintances are made and more or less temporary intrigues
begun, distance and strangeness adding spice to the ad-
venture.

Thus, in normal years, the festive mood of the mila-
fnala spreads itself through the dull round of the karlhom.
But if the food be plentiful and the festive mood exu-
berant j if there are special reasons for celebration or some
need to comfort the spirits of the people, as after a de-
feat in war or an unsuccessful kula expedition, then the
period of dancing is deliberately prolonged. Such an ex-
tension is called uslgolay "together for a dance" {usl from
•KJo^i = dance, gola^= to accumulate or forgather). It
may last one, two, or even three months. Like the mila-
malay this extension has its inaugural ceremony, its inter-
mediate feasts, and its climax in an orgy of feasting and
dancing which may last for several days. People from
friendly villages are invited 3 they arrive with presents
and return home laden with counter-gifts. All that has

1 Cf. Argonauts, p. 186.

251

CUSTOMARY FORMS OF LICENCE

been previously said with reference to the sexual oppor-
tunities offered by the main festival period obviously ap-
plies also to the usigola.

CEREMONIAL GATHERINGS: KAYASA

The usigola (extension of dancing period) is only one
type of the festivities into which the fnilmnala may be
extended. The generic name for such periods of com-
petitive obligatory dancing, amusement or other activity
is kayasa. A kayasa is always organized upon a definite
pattern, with a ceremonial according to its kindj and it
has, in some aspects, the binding force of law. A kayasa
need not be specially a period of amusement. There are
kayasa of economic activities, such as gardening, fishing
or the production of shell ornaments. But although the
usigola belongs to this type of communal activity, it is
never called kayasa; nor is this term applied to competi-
tive ceremonial and obligatory expeditions of the kula
type. Such special kula expeditions are always called
uvalaku,^

In certain cases the activity round which a kayasa cen-
tres is an exclusive privilege of the community or clan 5
but whatever its kind, initiative must always be taken by
the headman, who acts as toUkayasa (master of the
kayasa). It is he who, with the assistance of his clans-

^ For a description of the wvalaku, cf. Argonauts of the Western Pa-
cific, passim. The place of the kayasa in economic life has been indicated
in my article on the "Primitive Economics of the Trobriand Islanders,"'
Economic Journal, March, 1921. Its legal aspect has been referred to in
Crime and Custom in Savage Society, p. 61,

252

CEREMONIAL GATHERINGS

men and kinsmen, has to provide the wherewithal for the
big feast or, rather, the ceremonial distribution of food
(sagali) which inaugurates the proceedings. Those who
partake of this — and practically all the community have
to do so — are under a formal obligation to exert them-
selves for the whole period, so that the kayasa may be a
success 5 and, at times, when their zeal in work or amuse-
ment shows signs of flagging, a new feast is given to re-
vive enthusiasm. There is a reason behind this fiction of
a legal obligation towards the leader on account of food
and gifts received: for the glory of a successful kayasa
devolves principally upon the toUkayasa (the leader or
owner of the kayasa). But, as we know already, there is
also scope for the ambition of any participant, and the
element of emulation is very strong in all kayasa. Each
of them includes some form of competitive display or
contest, and there is always a pronouncement of public
opinion on the result. So that the most successful or
energetic participants also receive an individual share of
glory.

Among the kayasa of pure amusement, we may men-
tion first the tug-of-war game, already described in this
section. When played as a kayasa it is inaugurated cere-
monially by a big distribution of food (sagali^ see ch. xi,
sec. 2). After that it has to be continued night after night
in full force, with utter disregard of personal inclination,
comfort, or even property, which, as mentioned already,
is often damaged. The community divides regularly into
two parts j especially good tuggers acquire renown, and the
stories of extraordinary feats, of special havoc wrought,

253

CUSTOMARY FORMS OF LICENCE

or o£ long and arduous deadlocks, fill the whole district
with the fame {huturd) of leader and participants. There
is a sporting kayasa, specially popular in the southern
part of the district, in which miniature canoes are sailed
competitively. Another type of kayasa^ called kamrorUy
is performed exclusively by women, and consists of com-
munal singing. This is regarded as a counterpart of the
ceremonial dancing, in which, with very rare exceptions,
only men take part. In the kamroru kayasay women, in
full dress, seat themselves on new mats spread on the
central place and, swaying rhythmically, sing certain songs
in unison. The men look on from the platforms of the
storehouses and admire the most beautiful figures and the
finest voices.

There is a more direct erotic appeal in the festivities
connected with the sweet-smelling butta. The flowering
season of the hutla tree coincides with the milamala period
(annual feast of the returning spirits), and the flower
kayasa is therefore only held in those years when owing
to mourning there can be no dances in the village. Other-
wise the season is always devoted to dancing. The flowers
are collected in the jungle, made into wreaths and gar-
lands, and exchanged with a blowing of conch-shells. As
the natives put it: "We make kula (ceremonial exchange)
with hutla wreaths." In fact, whoever initiates an ex-
change has to say, as he offers the wreath: um^maygu^a
(thy valuable present). A small return gift of food or
betel-nut is then made, with the words: katn kwayfolu
(thy preliminary return). Finally a counterpart of the
first present is returned to the donor with the words: um

3.54

CEREMONIAL GATHERINGS

yotile (thy return gift). Thus the exact terminology of
the kula is followed in these transactions/ A festive
character is given to the whole proceedings by the
groups of people walking about and singing 3 by the gaily
dressed boys and girls taking part in the ceremonial far
into the night 5 and by the sound of the conch-shells,
blown as each gift is presented.

The competitive element in the hutia festival lies in the
quality and quantity of the presents received and, given,
and, as in all forms of such exchange, to give or to re-
ceive a magnificent gift contributes to the glory of either
side. This kayasa provides opportunities for courtship
and for the expression of mutual admiration 3 a would-be
lover can display his appreciation of a girl in the magni-
tude of his gifts, and at the same time flatter her vanity
and satisfy her ambition. Thus beauty, erotic interest^
ambition, and vanity are the chief interests in this kayasa,

A more pronounced part is played by vanity in the fes-
tivals of hair-dressing {wayfulu) and of ornamental shell
discs {kaloma). The wayfulu is confined to the islands
of Kitava and Vakuta. After a long period during which
no deaths have occurred so that the people have been able
to grow long hair, a display of this highly valued natural
beauty is held (see ch. x, sec. 3). Only men take part in
this kayasa. They adorn themselves, spread mats on the
central place, and, teasing out their hair with the long-
pronged Melanesian comb, they sing and display its
charm. The women admire and pronounce judgment on
the quality and beauty of the hair. The kayasa of shell

1 Cf. Argonauts of the Western Pacific, pp. 352-7.

255

CUSTOMARY FORMS OF LICENCE

ornaments is held in the villages of Sinaketa and Vakuta.
When a large number of these discs have been produced,
the men adorn themselves, and day after day, evening
after evening, parade the central place.

To a European observer the proceedings of a kayasor
appear unspeakably monotonous and pointless. The repe-
tition for weeks on end of exactly the same procedure
prevents even an ethnographer from regular attendance
at any. kayasa. But, for the native, apart from any feel-
ing of duty, the whole affair has an intense interest and
considerable attraction. In this, sex plays a considerable
part. For the desire to show off, to produce a personal
effect, to achieve butura (renown) in its most valued
form, that of irresistible charm, contains a pronounced
erotic element.

ORGIASTIC FESTIVALS

There is, or, at least, used to be till the missionaries
came, one kayasa which centred round erotic dalliance
satisfied in public and that very thoroughly. This kayasa
was never practised in the northern and central parts of
the district, but only by a few villages in the extreme
south end of the island of Vakuta. It was called kamaliy
a dialectic variation of the word kimaliy the erotic scratch-
ing, which symbolizes the erotic approach, as does kissing
with us. It is a general rule in all districts of the Tro-
briands that, when a boy and girl are strongly attracted to
each other, and especially before their passion is satisfied,
the girl is allowed to inflict considerable bodily pain on

256

ORGIASTIC FESTIVALS

her lover by scratching, beating, thrashing, or even
wounding with a sharp instrument. However severely
he is handled, such treatment is accepted in good part by
the boy, as a sign of love and a symptom of temperament
in his sweetheart. On one occasion, during the harvest
festivities, I had to dress the wound of a boy who came
to me with a deep cut in the muscles right across the back
under his shoulder-blades. The girl who had made it
hovered near in deep concern. I was told that she struck
too hard without realizing it. The boy did not appear to
mind, though he was evidently in pain, and (so I heard)
he reaped his reward that same night. This case was
typical. The kimali or kamali is a form of, feminine
wooing, a compliment and an invitation, which in the
kamali kayasa was systematized and carried out on a large
scale. Boys in gala dress would walk round the central
place singing: girls would come up to them and teasing
jokes and repartee would be exchanged, very much as in
other kayasa. But things were allowed to go very much
further. Women, who were expected on such occasions
to be much more forward than usual, would pass from
teasing to scratching, and attack the boys with mussel-
shells and bamboo-knives, or with a piece of obsidian or
a small sharp axe. A boy was allowed to run away, and
would do so if his assailant were not attractive to him.
But it was a sign of manliness and a proof of success to
be properly slashed about. Also, when a boy was attracted
by a girl, he would, naturally, not run away, but take her
attack as an invitation. The ambition of a woman was
successively to slash as many men as she could 3 the am-

257

CUSTOMARY FORMS OF LICENCE

bition of a man to carry away as many cuts as he could
stand, and to reap the reward in each case.

I have never assisted at such a kayasa. As far as I
could find out, through the interference of the white mis-
sionaries and officials, not one had occurred within
twenty years of my arrival. So that data collected
about this kayasa are what might be called "hearsay
documents." The account of scratching and cutting, how-
ever, tallies so well with facts observed by myself that I
have not the slightest reason to doubt its accuracy. What
follows is given with due reservation, though it agrees
with the reports about some other Melanesian and Poly-
nesian natives. I was told by several independent in-
formants, both from the districts concerned and from the
north, that the relaxation of all control was complete dur-
ing that kayasa. Sexual acts would be carried out in public
on the central place j married people would participate in
the orgy, man or wife behaving without restraint, even
though within hail of each other. This licence would be
carried so far that copulation would take place within sight
of the luleta (sister, man speaking 3 brother, woman
speaking): the person with regard to whom the strictest
sexual taboos are always observed (see chs. xiii and xiv).
The trustworthiness of these statements is confirmed by
the fact that I was told several times, when discussing
other forms of kayasa in the north, that all of them were
carried out in a much more orgiastic manner in the south.
Thus at a tug-of-war kayasa in the south, men and women
would always be on opposite sides. The winning side
would ceremonially deride the vanquished with the typical

258

ORGIASTIC FESTIVALS

ululating scream {katugogovd)^ and then assail their
prostrate opponents, and the sexual act would be carried
out in public. On one occasion when I discussed this
matter with a mixed crowd from the north and the south,
both sides categorically confirmed the correctness of this
statement.

In this context two occasional forms of customary inter-
course may be mentioned. During the mortuary wake
{yawaU\ which takes place immediately after a man's
death, people from all the surrounding communities con-
gregate and take part in the songs and ceremonies which
last for the best part of the night. When, far into the
night, the visitors return home, it is the custom for some
of the girls to remain behind to sleep with certain boys
of the bereaved village. Their regular lovers must not,
and do not, interfere.

Another type of sexual latitude is associated with hos-
pitality given to strangers j but this obligation was more
strictly observed in former times when, owing to the
greater fear and mistrust of strangers, the visitors were
fewer and better chosen. I am told that it was then con-
sidered the duty of a girl from the village to act as the
stranger's partner for the night. Hospitality, curiosity,
and the charm of novelty would make this duty perhaps
not very arduous.

The only overseas strangers, who, in olden days, used
to voyage regularly, were those who came to the Tro-
briands on the kula trading expeditions. When the cere-
monial stages of the visit were over and some exchange
of gifts had taken place, the visitors would enter the vil-

259

CUSTOMARY FORMS OF LICENCE

lage and hold friendly converse with the inhabitants. It
was also the duty of the hosts to provide the guests with
food 3 but this could never be given in the village, since
it was against all etiquette to eat within a strange com-
munity. Therefore it was taken to the beach where the
canoes were moored. Thither the village beauties would
carry it on platters, and wait till these were emptied.
Friendly talk would ripen into intimacy, presents would
be offered by the strangers to the girls, and their accept-
ance was a sign that the girl was willing. It was consid-
ered right, and sanctioned by custom, that the local girls
should sleep with the visitors j and for this, also, accepted
lovers had not the right to punish or reprimand them.

This holds good especially about the northern half of
the island, visited by men from Kitava and the other
Marshall Bennett Islands. In the southern villages, vis-
ited by the foreign-speaking Dobuans and Amphlettans,
the strangers also sometimes slept with the local girls.
But this was not so usual, as the Dobuans never recipro-
cated or allowed their women folk to grant any favours
to visiting Trobrianders.

The customs and arrangements so far considered are
partly seasonal, partly dependent on special circumstances.
The games described at the beginning of this chapter,
which take place by moonlight on the central place, are
mostly played during the trade-wind season, from May
to September. The harvest activities and festivals begin
in June and last into August. The milamda begins in
September and ends in October. Its date is fixed by the
appearance of the falolo worm, which comes up regularly

260

SEARCH FOR AMOROUS ADVENTURE

at a certain full moon. The name for this worm is also
fmlamala^ and it is sometimes mystically connected with
the arrival of the spirits. The kayasa is sometimes held
during the milamala season, but usually it occurs imme-
diately afterwards as an extension of the festival. Dur-
ing the full rainy season which follows, January, Febru-
ary, and March, the telling of fairy tales and gardening
are the main social occupations. We shall have to touch
upon these presently. Bathing games take place in April
and May, October and November, between the dry and
wet seasons.

What is the relation of these customs to the normal
course of courtship described in chapter iii? They give
opportunities for strangers to meet and for erotic interest
to pass beyond the confines of the village. This may lead
merely to romantic escapades which enrich experience and
guide maturer choice within the community. But some-
times such intrigues end in marriage, and then the woman
always follows her husband since, as we know, marriage
is patrilocal.

ULATILE ^YOUTH IN SEARCH OF AMOROUS

\
ADVENTURE

The periodical rise and fall of erotic life in the Tro-
briands might be represented by a curve determined by
tribal festivities, ceremonial customs, and economic ac-
tivities. These, in turn, follow the moon and seasons in
their courses. The curve rises regularly at full moon and
its highest point occurs at and immediately after harvest.

261

CUSTOMARY FORMS OF LICENCE

The drops in the curve are associated with absorbing
economic pursuits and sports, with gardening and overseas
expeditions. Certain of the festivals favour an overflow
of erotic interest beyond the boundaries of a village com-
munity.

A liaison between two people who live at a distance
from one another, is not too easy. Many special customs
of assignation, visit, and tryst, which the natives compre-
hensively call ulatlley tend to assist separated lovers.
Such visiting when done by men is called ulatiley which
means literally "male youth," and describes the group
of adolescent boys and young men who often act in a body
in work or play (pi. 59). By an extension of meaning,
the noun ulatile is used to describe "youthful exuberance,"
or even, more specifically, "sexual activity." We have
met with this term already (ch. iii, sec. 2) in the com-
pound td^ulaule (young man). Pronounced with a cer-
tain intonation, this term conveys the meaning of "gay
dog," or even "fornicator." Applied to a woman, it
assumes the form naka^ulatiley and is used only with the
derogatory meaning, "wanton woman," or more precisely,
"a woman who desires more than she is desired." In its
original etymological implication, it probably means "for-
ward like a man" (see ch. xiii, sec. 4). Used as a verb,
the root ulatile is applied primarily to males, and it sig-
nifies "to go on a love-making expedition," "to have
success with women," "to indulge in excessive sexual inter-
course." It can be used by extension about women, except
when it is applied to an expedition outside the village, in
which case it refers only to men.

262

SEARCH FOR AMOROUS ADVENTURE

There are two forms of ulatile expedition to which the
word applies in a somewhat technical sense. The first is
a matter of necessity: a lover must visit his sweetheart
in her own village. If, on one of the several occasions
described in the previous section, two people from dif-
ferent communities have become strongly attracted by
each other, they will arrange a meeting. As a rule the
boy has some intim.ate friend in the girl's village, and this
makes things easier, since this friend will help him. It
is a matter of etiquette for the lover to adorn himself
for the tryst, and this compels him to observe a certain
measure of secrecy. He will not walk on the main road,
but surreptitiously steal through the bush. "Like a sor-
cerer he will go 5 stop and listen j go sideways and push
through the jungle j no one must see him." Thus one of
my informants likened such ulatile to the clandestine
expeditions of sorcerers who, on their nocturnal expedi-
tions, must not be seen by anybody.

As he approaches the village he has to be specially
careful. In his own village such a passing intrigue, if
discovered, would only arouse the jealousy of the accred-
ited lover and start a minor quarrel. But an erotic
poacher caught in another community might be seriously
mishandled, not only by the jealous lover, but by all the
other boys. He might also bring upon his sweetheart the
reproaches of her regular lover. However, the main
reason for secrecy is that it is enjoined by custom as a rule
of the game. The two usually arrange to meet in the
jungle near the girl's village. Sometimes the girl guides
her lover to the chosen place by lighting a firej some-

263

CUSTOMARY FORMS OF LICENCE

times they agree to imitate the call of a birdj sometimes
she marks the way into the chosen spot of the jungle by
tearing the leaves in a pattern or by placing leaves on
the road.

If the passion stands the test of time and difficulty and
ripens into affection, steps are taken to make the liaison
permanent and official. The boy may join his friend in
the village, and remain there under some pretext as a
temporary citizen. Or else the girl will be accepted in
his village and come to live there. When taking a village
census, I often came across a girl who was staying in the
community because she was living with some boy belong-
ing to it. The two would sleep together in a hukumatula
(unmarried boys' and girls' house) in the same way as
an ordinary affianced couple (see ch. iii, sec. 4), and if
the liaison went well, it ended naturally in marriage.

Another technical use of the word ulatile applies to
an entirely different type of love-making expedition.
.Sometimes a group of boys, who have brought away spe-
cially pleasant memories of another community from
some festive gathering, will decide to go there in a body,
•on a regular ulatile expedition. Here secrecy is neces-
sary, too. For though such expeditions are customary and,
in a way, lawful, they constitute an encroachment on the
rights of two other groups, the ordinary sweethearts of
the ulatile boys, and the youths of the other village. If
caught by either party the adventurers would have to
face a volley of abuse, or even of blows j for girls in the
Trobriands can defend their rights by force, and the boys
in each community regard their women folk as their own
preserve. The adventurers would, thereforej usually

264

SEARCH jb^OR AMOROUS ADVENTURE

steal out at night and put on their ornaments outside their
village. But once on the main road, they become bois-
terous and defiant, for this is the proper behaviour on such
an occasion. There are even some special bawdy songs,
called Wuwdy to which they keep time as they go along.

LO'UWA SONG (l)

Bagiwawela!
Necklace of Wawela!

Aramwaye! Bagigido^u!
Hoho! Fine necklace!

Say am, Rafa^odi.

Sayam, Rapa'odi.
Bakwatega Kadlratume,

I anchor indeed (on) Kadiratume (beach),

Isideli

He sits by her

Waydesi!

Hallo!

Agudeydesi!

Hollay!

un?unattne;
young man 3
kafukafugula
young woman,
Kalamwaya!
Hoho!

itolala,

she stands up.

Kalamwaya!

Hoho!

Free Translation
"Hoho — (I come adorned with) a fine necklace,
The necklace of Wawela, like Sayam with the armshell

Rapa'odi,
I anchor on a beach in Gawa, a boy sits by his girl.
She stands near him. Hallo! Young woman.
Hurray, hoho, hurray."

Sayam is said to be a man celebrated for beauty j and
famous ornaments, such as the Rapa'odi armshell, are
associated with attraction, success and love magic. He

265

CUSTOMARY FORMS OF LICENCE

appears here adorned with a famous armshell named
Rapa'odi, which, as indicated in the free translation,
means that the "I" of the song also wears a fine neck-
lace. In the reduplicated form un^unatmey the ;^ is a
dialectic equivalent of the / of ulatile.

Aramwaye!

Hoho! I'll sleep,

balage kuftra

I'll hear drum his (of)

Raytagine

It throbs (with dance music)
karisaygwa^Uy
their festival skirts,

Kala wosi

His song

Gigiremutu

Blackened

Tokivina

LO'UWA SONG (ll)

Bamasisiy bamamata;

I'll wakej

saygwa'u,
festival skirts.
layma^i

it fetches (attracts)
okuvaUla.
on their flanks.

oyamala,
in hand.

owadolay lakatunenm
on mouth, his small drum

kudula

his teeth

yamtu Wavivi

treads (village of) Wavivi

Tokivina

Yamtufnutu Wavivi,

He treads and treads (through the village of) Wavivi.

Free Translation

Hoho! I awake from my sleep, I hear the festive
beat of the drums, as they throb with dance music —
attracting women with full-dress skirts, with festive
skirts on their flanks. With his song on his mouth,

266

SEARCH, FOR AMOROUS ADVENTURE

with his small drum in his hand, his teeth blackened,
Tokivina rhythmically treads in the village of Wavivi,
he walks in dancing rhythm through the village of
Wavivi.

In this short song we have a condensed picture of a
ulatile situation — the awakening at night, the sound of
a distant drum announcing great festivities in a neighbour-
ing village. And here, again, there is a legendary person
moving in the background, partly as a good augury, partly
as an ideal. The psychology of this traditional worship
of personal beauty and charm will be discussed later on.

Such songs, I am told, were also sung in olden days
to indicate that the party was neither on the warpath nor
on a sorcery expedition, nor bent on any other real mis-
chief. As they approach their goal they become quiet
again, for they must not be seen by the village youths.
The girls, of course, know when the expedition is draw-
ing near, for everything has been previously arranged in
detail. The visitor most familiar with the village creeps
near and gives the agreed signal. One by one the girls
sneak out of the houses and meet their lovers in the bush.
Sometimes the girls are already awaiting them at some
pre-arranged meeting place outside. Should this gather-
ing of lovers be detected, a fight might ensue, leading,
in former times, even to war between the two com-
munities.

Such ulaule expeditions are definite deviations from
the regular course of tribal life.^ They lead invariably
to lovers' quarrels in both villages, and to serious dif-

1 For a discussion of the customary abrogations of law and conflicts be-
tween various classes of custom, see Crime and Custom, part ii.

267

CUSTOMARY FORMS OF LICENCE

ferences between the two communities. They were an
important feature of love life in former days when
armed expeditions for purposes of love-making were more
usual than an individual ulatile. Nowadays, however,
when it is so much easier and safer for a man or woman
to walk alone even at night, the trysting of one boy with
one girl is much more common.

To preserve perspective and to place the ulatile expe-
ditions correctly in their context of tribal life, it must be
realized that there are various occasions, apart from court-
ship, on which the youth of the village would visit other
communities in a body. At harvest and during the danc-
ing season (see pis. 57 and 58), for common games and
mortuary feasts, groups of young men, more or less
dressed up, can be met on the road or seen paddling along
in the large fishing canoes. As a matter of fact, the love-
making expeditions from the lagoon villages of the west
coast would also be made by water (see pi. 60). Thus
a party of boys on the road, decorated and singing, may
Le bent either on a real ulatile expedition, or else on some
ordinary inter- village business or amusement j and it is
difficult on surface evidence to draw any sharp distinction
between erotic and other expeditions.

It is easy to see how inter-village intrigues fit into the
general scheme of courtship described in chapter iii. The
childish erotic experiences with which the sexual life his-
tory of an individual begins always takes place within the
community 5 the ulatile is one among the customs which
carry erotic interest and those transitory affairs, which
are the next stage in development, beyond the village..

268

ESCAPADE OF GIRLS

Such intrigues may become permanent and thus the ulatiler
is one of the ways in which matrimonial choice is extended
beyond a single village.

KATUYAUSI ^A CEREMONIAL ESCAPADE OF GIRLS

In matters of love the Trobriand woman does not con-
sider herself man's inferior, nor does she lag behind him
in initiative and self-assertion. The ulatile have their
counterpart in the katuyausiy amorous expeditions of vil-
lage girls to other communities.

Sometimes these expeditions are simply to avenge too-
much ulatile on the part of the boys. Or, as happens in.
coastal villages, the men are long absent fishing, trading,,
or sailing, and the girls seek consolation in another village.
At times the incentive is more directly feminine. The
girls have equipped themselves with a specially brilliant
supply of grass petticoats, and want to display them on a.
wider stage than their own village. Some of my cynical
informants affirmed that a katuyausi expedition is the
girls' best means of replenishing their store of betel-nut
and tobacco and of collecting an armlet or a comb, a.
pleasing handbag or a new supply of beads.

I am also under the impression that on each occasion,
the katuyausi party offer some pretext for their visit, such
as the desire to see the crops, or to admire a new construc-
tion, a chief's house or yam-house, or else they pretend,
to be hawking some object for sale.

Whatever the chief incentive, and the pretext, as sooa

269

CUSTOMARY FORMS OF LICENCE

as their decision is taken the girls will choose an interme-
diary to arrange the date and conditions of their prospec-
tive visit to the boys of the other village. The procedure
of a katuyausi expedition differs greatly from that of
a ulatile. The boys leave after sunset under cover of
night, whereas the girls start as a rule early in the after-
noon. The boys creep out of the village, but once fairly
on the road, sing and behave boisterously. The girls also
steal quietly away, but their behaviour is decorous
throughout the journey. Near the other village the boys
have to hide, but the girls enter the village grove openly,
sit down there and put the finishing touches to their toilet.
They paint their lips red with betel-nut, draw decorative
lines on their faces, and fill their armlets with aromatic
herbs (pi. 6i). It is etiquette for the local boys to allow
them to remain alone on the outskirts of the village until
they give the sign for the boys to approach. During this
time the girls may sing, play the native (now the im-
ported) Jew's harp, and chew betel-nut j when they are
ready to receive, they sing the song which is the previ-
ously arranged signal for the boys to come nearer. The
latter have, of course, been expecting them, and now ap-
proach in groups. Soon the whole village community is
seated facing the girls, with the exception of their local
rivals, who resent the intrusion and sulk, though custom
does not allow them actively to interfere with the pro-
ceedings.

It is evening by now, and the interesting stage of the
visit is approaching. The katuyausi party have remained
seated, nonchalant and detached (pi. 62). The youths

270

ESCAPADE OF GIRLS

and older men stand facing them, pursuing their own
conversations with apparent unconcern. Then banter and
jokes begin to pass from one side to the other 5 the boys
come nearer the girls and the ceremony of choice begins.
According to custom, the initiative in pairing off should
come from the hosts, and each guest has to accept any
offer made to her as a matter of etiquette. But, of course,
definite preferences between the outstanding individuals
of each group exist and are known. An unimportant boy
would not dare interfere with the pleasure of his stronger,
elder, and more influential comrade, so that in reality the
choice is largely based on anterior intrigues and attach-
ments. Each boy then ceremonially offers a small gift
to the girl of his choice — a comb, a necklet, a nose stick,
a bunch of betel-nut. If she accepts the gift she accepts
the boy for that night as her lover. When the boy knows
the girl well he presents the gift himself. If he does not,
or if he feels too shy, he will ask help of an older man,
who hands over the offering with the words, ^^kam
va^otu" {va*otu — ^visiting present, present of induce-
ment), "So-and-so gives it to you 5 you are his sweet-
heart." Very rarely does a girl refuse or ignore such a
present J if she did, she would greatly offend and mortify
the man.

After the boys and girls have thus been allotted in
pairs, they all, as a rule, go to some spot in the jungle,
where they spend the best part of the night chewing,
smoking, and singing, each couple keeping to themselves.
At times a boy and a girl will leave the main group with-
out any attention being paid to them. Some of the boys

271

CUSTOMARY FORMS OF LICENCE

may invite their sweethearts to spend the rest of the night
in a bukumatula of the village, but usually this presents
difficulties. All the arrangements associated with the
katuyausiy as well as with the ulatile, are distinguished
by complete decorum, and by the absence of all orgiastic
-elements. They are carried out, no doubt, in a less deli-
cate manner in the southern villages than in the north,
but even in the south they essentially differ from such
•orgiastic customs as the kamaU, the bi^Uy and the custom
of the yausay which will be described in the next section.

As far as I could gather, in former times no year would
pass without some two, three or four katuyausi parties
visiting a community. The first missionary had to ask
for a special regulation in order to put down this "abom-
inable abuse." At present, as a result of the white man's
interference with local custom, combined with his intro-
duction of much worse immorality, the regulated and
decorous custom of the katuyausi has fallen into decay.
But even while I was in the Trobriands, parties of girls
from Okaykoda visited Omarakana, and from Kaybola
went to Kwaybwaga3 also the Kwaybwaga girls avenged
themselves on their lovers by going on katuyausi to
Vilaylima. Early in my stay at Omarakana in 191 8, a
number of such guests came, at harvest time and osten-
:sibly to admire the yams, and I was even able to pho-
tograph them and to watch the earlier part of the
proceedings.

The return of a katuyausi party to their own village
is often a sad epilogue to a gay night. The girls try to
•enter the village and regain their houses unobserved.

272

ORGIASTIC ASSAULTS

But they are not always successful. If the whole party
is waylaid and caught, the reckoning takes place then and
there. The culprits are abused, beaten, and, as I was told
by several of my informants, sometimes actually violated
by their own lovers in public. Several boys would hold
a girl, while the rightful owner exercised his prerogative
as a punishment. If this be true it is the only exception
to that rule of strict decorum in public which is observed
by all Trobrianders, with the exception of the people of
Vakuta, Okayaulo, and some others of the southern vil-
lages.

YAUSA ORGIASTIC ASSAULTS BY WOMEN

We now turn to the extreme south of the main island,
and the adjoining island of Vakuta. We have already
mentioned these districts, not very honourably, several
times. They are in general distinguished ethnologically
by a certain coarseness of character and habit which is
displayed in many aspects of their life. In sexual matters
they are undoubtedly much more crude than the north-
erners, and have practices which would offend the finer
feeling for etiquette and decorum, if not for morals, of
the latter. Also, in the past, these villages were on hostile
terms with most of their neighbours.

The data which we have given above as to the orgiastic
character of one or two forms of kayasa receive addi-
tional confirmation from another custom which used to be
in vogue among these natives. The exact nature of the
custom, its full details and its correct perspective, must

273

CUSTOMARY FORMS OF LICENCE

unfortunately remain obscure. All I know about it is
from hearsay, and the custom is so unlike anything which
I have seen myself, that I am unable to add those neces-
sary touches of life which depend on actual observation.

All districts in the Trobriands have the economic custom
of female communal labour in the weeding of gardens.
Since it is a tedious, monotonous activity, which requires
little skill and not much attention, and can be best enli-
vened by gossip and company, the women work together at
each garden in'turn, until all the village plots are weeded
over. As in all other exclusively feminine occupations,
it is bad form for any man to come near them while they
are working, or to pay any attention to them save on a
matter of business.

Now this communal weeding when practised by women
of the villages of Okayaulo, Bwaga, Kumilabwaga,
Louya, Bwadela, or by the villages of Vakuta, gives the
weeders a curious privilege.^ If they perceive a stranger,
a man from any village but their own, passing within
sight, they have the customary right to attack him, a right
which by all accounts they exercise with zeal and energy.

The man is the fair game of the women for all that
sexual violence, obscene cruelty, filthy pollution, and
rough handling can do to him. Thus first they pull off
and tear up his pubic leaf, the protection of his modesty
and, to a native, the symbol of his manly dignity. Then,
by masturbatory practices and exhibitionism, they try to
produce an erection in their victim and, when their
manoeuvres have brought about the desired result, one

•"'• Compare map.

274

ACTUALITY OF ORGIASTIC LICENCE

of them squats over him and inserts his penis into her
vagina. After the first ejaculation he may be treated
in the same manner by another woman. Worse things
are to follow. Some of the women will defecate and
micturate all over his body, paying special attention to his
face, which they pollute as thoroughly as they can. "A
man will vomit, and vomit, and vomit," said a sympathetic
informant. Sometimes these furies rub their genitals
against his nose and mouth, and use his fingers and toes,
in fact, any projecting part of his body, for lascivious
purposes. The natives from the north are very much
amused by this custom, which they despise or affect to
despise. They love to enter into details, and to demon-
strate by convincing mimicry. Local informants from the
south confirmed this account in all essentials. They were
by no means ashamed of their custom, regarding it rather
as a sign of the general virility of the district, and passing
on any possible opprobrium to the stranger-victims. Some
of my local informants added that at the yausa^ as this
custom is called, women would throw off their fibre skirts,
and naked "like a band of tauva^u*^ (evil spirits) pounce
upon the man. He also added that hair would be torn
from the man's head, and that he would be lacerated and
beaten till he was too weak to get up and move away.

ACTUALITY OF ORGIASTIC LICENCE

Such is the natives' account of the yausa. What are the
facts? I never observed them at first hand 3 partly be-

275

CUSTOMARY FORMS OF LICENCE

cause I was never able to go south at the time of weed-
ing, partly because I was told that, even now, no stranger
to the district would dream of going there at that season.
Had I gone there in person, the negative result would
have been ethnologically disappointing, the positive dis-
tinctly unpleasant 5 so I abstained. When I tried, as
always in such cases, to test the general statement by his-
torical fact, to find out how many people had been thus
ill-treated — who, when and on what occasion — I invari-
ably drew a blank. I always received the same answer:
"Oh, people are so afraid that no one would dare to come
near." The only concrete argument in support of its
truth was that Misipelosi and Misimoytena (the Rev.
S. B. Fellowes, the first Missionary, and the Hon. M. H.
Moreton, the first Resident Magistrate) had been afraid
to face the yausa^ and that no gumanuma (white man)
had ever dared to do so. I also was begged not to make
any attempt to go south in the yausa season, and I obeyed
the advice. And I thus became another proof of the
reality of this custom to the natives.

So I was left with the principal question unanswered:
is this custom, so exactly and minutely described, so
prominent in the native interest, a fact in the sense that
it has been really practised? or only in so far that it
would be practised should occasion arise? Or is it merely
one of those customs which only exist in belief and in
legend, and have never had any basis in actual occurrence?

The most that can be said with certainty is that the
yausay if it happened at all, happened extremely rarely 5
for even less in the olden days than now would a stranger

276

ACTUALITY OF ORGIASTIC LICENCE

have occasion to visit those inhospitable regions, which
were on a hostile footing with all their neighbours and
always ready to harm a stranger in one way or another.
Taking the tradition at its lowest value, it is a standing
myth, backed up by lively interest and a strong belief.
It gives the women of the region a bellicose attitude, it
surrounds them at weeding time with an absolute taboo,
and gives their communal work in the garden the char-
acter of a sex privilege. The only parallel for the cus-
tom in folk-lore is the legend about Kaytalugi, the land
of the sexually insatiable women (see ch. xii, 4) 5 and in
actual fact, the orgiastic nature, in the south, of the
kayasa of the tug-of-war and of the erotic scratching, and
the greater sexual coarseness to be found there."^

It is characteristic that all the natives are interested
in this custom and amused by it. Whenever any cognate
or associated subject is discussed — gardens, communal
work, the position of women, fighting or sex — the yausa

^ In this matter parallels might be found perhaps among tribes further
south on the d'Entrecasteaux Archipelago, and on the mainland of New
Guinea. I was told by a white trader that on the southern shore of Nor-
manby Island there are several orgiastic performances and festivities.
On certain occasions a small hut with a very high front gable is con-
structed and passes under the name of "the entrance of the body." In
this hut a girl will remain during the festivity, boys will visit her semi-
publicly, and have intercourse with her one after another. Again,
among the natives of the south coast, east of Orangerie Bay (the Da'ui
and Su'au), several boys sometimes cohabit with one girl, each in the
presence of another: a procedure which would be repugnant to the Tro-
briander's finer sensibilities. On the other hand, such tribes, for instance,
as the Dobuans of the d'Entrecasteaux Archipelago and the Mailu, are
considerably more restrained in sexual matters than either the Trobri-
anders or the other Southern Massim. Compare C. G. Seligman, op. cit.,
on the Southern Massim, chap, xxxviii, "Courtship, Betrothal, and Mar-
riage," and chap, xliii, "Morals." Compare also my account of the Mailu
in the "Natives of Mailu," Transactions of the Royal Society of South
Australia, 1915.

277

CUSTOMARY FORMS OF LICENCE

is dragged in, and the natives embark on detailed and
graphic descriptions, until it becomes the anthropologist's
bugbear. Only once did I find it really useful. In one
of the surly, reticent and coarse communities on the
lagoon, there was special difficulty in finding suitable
informants. One afternoon I was working with a group
of unwilling informants, seated under a large banyan
tree on the shore of the lagoon. It was one of those slack
and sterile periods so well-known to the field-worker,
when he discovers only gaps and inconsistencies in his
information, becomes cross and bored with his native
instructors, and they with himj when the imprisonment
in a profoundly alien and emotionally meaningless cul-
tural atmosphere weighs heavily and everything tempts
to desertion at any cost. In such moods the lagoon land-
scape, so charming and so monotonous, symbolized this
temptation, luring my eyes towards the dimly visible
Koya, the southern mountains of the Amphlett and
d'Entrecasteaux archipelagoes — ^where lay my road back
to civilization. I looked at the scene on the beach (pi. 63)
and envied some visitors from the south, who were due
to sail home in a day or two. Conversation was flagging,
and I could get nothing out of my informants, until we
happened on the subject of the yausa. Immediately the
natives became voluble and dramatic j their laughter and
animation attracted other people, and soon I was sur-
rounded by a group of men, among whom I was able
to find some tolerably good informants for my future
work. At the same time, I had a practical demonstration
of the contrast between the way in which such a custom

278

ACTUALITY OF ORGIASTIC LICENCE

is represented by those who have it, and by those who
do not. By the local men it was obviously caricatured
as a shameful and savage habit 5 the men's derisive
laughter and amused exaggerations were a clear indica-
tion of how superior they felt to the benighted heathen
who practised it. But the southern visitors, some of
whom had come from Okayaulo and Bwadela, the home
of the yausa, took, in a later conversation, a different
view, showing no embarrassment whatever. They told
me boastfully that no stranger ever dared to enter their
district at that time, that they themselves were the only
people free to walk about, that their women were the best
garden-weeders and the most powerful people in the
island. The two districts have been in contact for cen-
turies, they speak the same language and have an identi-
cal culture. Yet neither the custom of yausa nor the
mental attitude which characterizes it have begun to
diffuse. The mental attitudes are correlated and fit into
each other, but each district adheres to its own prerogative
of superiority, which consists in contradicting the other's
point of view.

n")

CHAPTER X

LOVE-MAKING AND THE PSYCHOLOGY OF
EROTIC LIFE

In the course of this inquiry we have been gradually
approaching our main interest, and taking an increasingly
detailed view of native love-making. At first we merely
made a general survey of the social organization and
economic activities of the natives, in so far as they affect
the relative positions of man and woman in the com-
munity. We studied their associations and their diver-
sions, in private and in public, at work and at play, in
magical and religious pursuits, as well as in everyday life.

Then coming nearer to our special subject we followed
the typical progress of courtship, and found it leading
to marriage and parenthood. In the last chapter wc de-
scribed certain customs which enrich and diversify the
normal course of courtship.

In this chapter it will be necessary to observe the dal-
liance of lovers at still closer quarters. We have to learn
the nature of their love interest and of the bonds which
unite them.

Throughout my exposition, I have always attempted
not only to state the norm, but to indicate the exceptions,
to trace what might be called the amplitude of deviation,
the margin within which people usually try, and some-
times succeed, in circumventing the strict rule. As we

281

PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

proceed now to the study of more intimate behaviour, the
elasticity of the rule becomes greater, and it grows more
imperative to give a dynamic description of how a rule
or an institution works, rather than how, in native theory,
law and morality is supposed or desired to work.

In general, as the ethnographer moves away from the
big fundamental, well-defined institutions — such as fam-
ily, marriage, kinship organization, the clan, exogamy,
the rules of courtship — towards the manifold details of
personal life, his methods of observation must become
more complex and his results less reliable. This cannot
be remedied and, for our comfort, it may be remembered
that, even in the most exact fields of human thought and
experience, a theoretical result can only be verified within
certain limits. The most exact of human observations is
only approximate, and all that even the chemist or physi-
cist can do is to state the limits within which his error is
encompassed. When investigating integral institutions,
such as marriage or the family, the ethnographer should,
if he be doing competent and intensive field-work, rely
on observation rather than on what the native informants
tell him. But when dealing with the subtler phases of
behaviour, this rule cannot, unfortunately, always be fol-
lowed. In the study of sexual attraction and the growth
of a passion, direct observation is always difficult, and at
times impossible, and a great deal of information has to
be collected from confidences and gossip.

The ethnographer must be alert to all that happens
round him. He must patiently win his way into village
life and make such personal friendships as encourage

282

PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

spontaneous confidences and the repetition of intimate
gossip. He must check ad hoc statements by remarks
dropped in more unguarded moments, explicating the im-
plied and estimating the importance of reservations and
reticences. For these are everywhere apt to be more
illuminating than direct affirmations, and are especially so
among these natives, whose keen sense of delicacy makes
the roundabout and allusive way the natural approach to
such subjects. It is possible to force them into speaking
directly, but this always produces an artificial and false
mental attitude, and exclusive reliance on such a method
would lead to results which lack entirely the colour of
real life.

Thus in the most delicate subjects the ethnographer is
bound to a large extent to depend on hearsay. Yet if
he resides for a long time among the natives, speaks their
language and makes close personal acquaintances, he will
be provided with sufficiently useful information. His
material will be certainly better than if it had been ob-
tained through the mechanical pumping of informants by
the question-and-answer method at so many sticks of
tobacco an hour.

Love is a passion to the Melanesian as to the Euro-
pean, and torments mind and body to a greater or lesser
extent 3 it leads to many an imfassey scandal, or tragedy 5
more rarely, it illuminates life and makes the heart ex-
pand and overflow with joy. "Out of a full heart the
mouth speaketh," and the cold ethnographer must indus-
triously jot down confidences poured out under the stress
of strong personal emotion. Also the gossip of those not

283

PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

directly affected by the event, yet sufficiently interested
in it to talk, especially if it be untoward — fuisquHl y a
quelque chose dans les malheurs de nos amis qui ne nous
deflalt fas — is scarcely less valuable material for the
investigator.

Spontaneous outpourings and village gossip dictated
by genuine interest, records of past tragedies, and stories
of erotic adventure, have yielded most of the raw material
for the descriptions given in this chapter. And the direct
knowledge of personal histories and interests made it
possible for me to get a true perspective, to look at mat-
ters from the native point of view. I was even often
able to go behind the explicit statements of the natives,
observing, as sometimes happened, that their actions and
feelings belied their words, and following up the clue
thus given me.

The reader will remember the misadventures of
Bagido'u, one of my best friends and informants (see
pi. 64, and ch. vi, sec. i), the animosities and quarrels
between Namwana Guya'u and Mitakata (see pi. 3 and
ch. i, sec. 2), the boasting Gomaya and his relations to
Ilamweria (see pi. 39 and ch. vii, sec. 4). It would
have been impossible for me to ascertain the rules of
custom and the moral ideas of the natives without the
subjective outpourings of these friends of mine.

Side by side with such live material, I naturally always
endeavoured to collect objective "documents": records
of historical events, samples of tradition, folk-lore and
magic. Thus my general impressions, and strong but
somewhat vague intuitions, were constantly checked and

284

EROTIC ATTRACTION

confirmed by data drawn from every sphere of tribal life.
In fact, chronologically, the "documents" are usually ob-
tained first, but their real comprehension can be gained
only from the knowledge of real life.

The reader interested in methodology will realize that
this exposition by cumulative versions — passing from in-
stitutions through the general record of a life history to
the detailed and intimate analysis which follows — does
justice not only to the nature of the material, but also to
the manner of its collection.

After this digression on the method of collecting data
and of their presentation, let us return once more to a
Trobriand village and approach a group of young people
playing in the moonlight, in festive mood and dressy let
us try to see them as they see each other j follow up their
attractions and repulsions. So far we have kept at a
discreet distance from the intimate behaviour, the motives
and feelings of lovers. More especially we have never
attempted to spy upon their passionate caresses. Now we
must try to reconstruct the history of a personal intrigue,
to understand the first impressions made by beauty and
charm, and to follow the development of a passion to
its end.

EROTIC ATTRACTION

What is it that makes the boys look with entranced
attention at one among a group of girls, moving rhyth-
mically in a game or carrying baskets at harvest 3 or that
fascinates the girls in one of the dancers who lead the

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PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

ring of swift runners in a kaydebu dance? (See pi. 6$.)
Is it possible for us to find out why a member of either
sex is almost universally rejected and why another is
sought after J why one category is labelled as plain or
unattractive and another as fascinating and beautiful?
The European observer soon finds that his standard of
personal charm does not essentially differ from that of the
natives, when he has once become accustomed to the
physical type and to the mannerisms of the Melanesians.
Thus, for instance, the girl on plate 66 is universally
regarded as a beauty, the one on plate 67 as a plain
woman 3 and with this opinion the reader will not disagree.
And yet the latter is a well-built woman and of a pro-
nounced Melanesian type. But it would be perhaps diffi-
cult and certainly useless to convey native standards of
beauty by means of European phrases and comparisons.
Fortunately there are a number of native expressions,
descriptions and categories which furnish some sort of
objective material, and together with the ethnographer's
commentary, may convey a fairly adequate idea of the
Trobriander's ideal of beauty.

It must be understood that the problem of erotic
charm with which we are now engaged, is different from
that discussed in chapter iv, which was concerned with the
motives which lead a Trobriand man or woman to enter
upon matrimony. In this connection, we found that
personal preference, though a powerful inducement to
marriage, was only one among others, some social, some
economic and some domestic. And even in the matter
of personal preference, the erotic motive is not exclusive.

286

EROTIC ATTRACTION

A man or woman of mature age will choose a domestic
partner quite different from the paramour who occupied
the best part of his or her youth. Marriage is often
determined by the attraction of character and personality
rather than by sexual adaptation or erotic seduction. This
fact, which has been already mentioned, I found con-
firmed in many concrete cases and in a hundred details.
Only in the passing intrigues is simple bodily charm the
principal attraction. Let us return then to our imaginary
pair and try to find out what it is that they see in each
other, as lovers.

When treating of love in fiction or anthropology, it
is easier and more pleasant to imagine objects really
worthy of admiration. In the Trobriands it would not
be difficult to find them, even for one equipped with
European taste and Nordic race prejudices j for, within
a considerable variety of types, there are to be found
men and women with regular delicate features, well-built
lithe bodies, clear skins, and that personal charm which
predisposes us towards a man, a nationality, or a race.

Verbal descriptions of a racial type are always weak
and unconvincing. They may be couched in anthropo-
metric terms and backed by numerical data, but these give
little help to the imagination and could only stimulate a
physical anthropologist. It is better for the reader to look
at pictures, in this book and in other works where the
Trobrianders have been described,^ and to hear what the

1 As, for instance, in C. G. Seligman, op. cit., and in Argonauts of the
Western Pacific. For comparative anthropometric data concerning Mela-
nesians and Papuans, cf. "A Classification of the Natives of British New
Guinea," J^ourn. R. Anthrop, Inst., vol. xxxix, 1909, by C. G. Seligman.

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PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

natives themselves have to say on the subject o£ beauty
and its opposite.

The natives are never at a loss when asked what ele-
ments go to the making o£ personal beauty in man or
woman. The subject is not only interesting to them as to
all other human beings, but it is surrounded by a rich folk-
lore and therefore commands an extensive vocabulary.
Many of their legends and songs have been specially com-
posed to exalt some famous dancer or singer, and in such
texts there are descriptions of ornament and dress, and
expressive phrases referring to personal appearance. The
charms used in beauty magic give instructive indications of
the Trobriander's desires and ideals, as do also the laments
for the dead, and descriptions of the blissful life in Tuma,
the land of the departed.

But although the renown and tradition of famous
beauties is handed down for generations with rich de-
scriptive details, it is difficult for the ethnographer to find
a living model for his inquiry. Whenever I asked any
of the old, and therefore expert, connoisseurs of beauty
whether any living woman could match the radiant
divinities drawn from their own and their father's
memories, the answer was always in the negative. The
Golden Age of real beauty seems to be quite over!

Let us approach the ideal of beauty by way of its nega-
tion, and see what, for the native, makes a person ugly

288

REPULSION BY UGLINESS

and repulsive, and therefore impossible from the erotic
standpoint. Deformity and disease in mind or body, old
age and albinism, all, according to native statements, put
a person beyond the pale of erotic interest. The ex-
pressions fnlgtla gaga (his face bad), or tomlgaga (ugly
man, literally man — face — ^ugly) are frequently in use,
and often with the added comment: "No one would sleep
with such an one."

Malformations are rare, and I myself cannot recall
a single hunchback or congenitally deformed person.
Through accident men may lose a limb: kaykela ifwase
(his leg has rotted away) 3 yamda ifwase (his arm has
rotted away) j but the most frequent congenital defect is
that of speech, which the natives describe by the same
word, tonagoway as is applied to idiocy and feeble-
mindedness.

The bad or repulsive characters of folk-lore are also
endowed with bodily deformities or abnormalities.
Dokonikan, the most prominent ogre of Kiriwinian folk-
lore, has several rows of teeth and cannot speak properly.
Women covered with hair and men with disgusting bodies
figure in some fairy tales.

As regards disease: sores, ulcers, and skin eruptions are
naturally held to be specially repulsive from the view-
point of erotic contact. Also to be so afflicted is the usual
punishment for breaking certain taboos. Indeed, a num-
ber of such taboos are only observed by young men, and
have no other raison d^etre than to prevent their skins
from being covered with sores. They might be called
specific beauty taboos. Thus, it is dangerous to eat fish

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PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

which is not quite fresh, or fish which has a very strong
flavour. Some kinds of fish are covered with unseemly
scales or spots, and these also are forbidden to young
men and women. Young people must abstain from yams
or fish which have been cut with a sharp instrument.
Similar taboos have to be kept by men about to sail on
an overseas expedition; they will say that they must only
eat "good fish" so that their faces may be beautiful.^

The unpleasant disease, tropical ring-worm, covering
the skin with perpetually peeling scales, and very prev-
alent among Melanesians, is said to be a definite draw-
back, and persons with this disease would not be reckoned
among the beauties even if their faces were fine. But it
does not seem to form a positive bar to love-making, any
more than to other pursuits. On the other hand, this
repulsive and contagious affliction is a real inconvenience
to the field-worker, who has constantly to deal with
afflicted natives and takes a long time to become accus-
tomed to it.

Old age is felt to be a serious handicap in affairs of
.gallantry. The contrast between repulsive old age and
attractive youth is brought out clearly in myth. A hero,
who is unsuccessful because of his elderly appearance,
becomes rejuvenated and gets everything that he wants.
First the marks scored upon him by the hand of time are
ruthlessly enumerated: a wrinkled skin, white hair, and
toothless jaws. Then the magical change is described:
his rounded face, the smooth full lines of his body, his
sleek, glossy skin, the thick black hair covering his head,

1 Cf. Argonauts of the Western Pacific, p. 336.

290

REPULSION BY UGLINESS

the beautiful black teeth shining between vermilion lips.
Now he can win the favours of desirable women, and im-
pose his wishes on men and Fate. Such pictures are drawn
in two of the chief myths of the kula (the ceremonial
exchange), which plays such a great part in tribal life, and
shows so many psychological affinities to their erotic in-
terests. Similar pictures are also to be found in the myth
of rejuvenation, in the ideas of the natives concerning a
future life, and in one or two fairy tales.^

Obesity is extremely rare, and in its more pronounced
forms is classed as a disease. Baldness is not infrequent.
It is considered a blemish, and a certain amount of criti-
cism is contained in the word tokuluhakami (bald man,
literally man-occiput empty-space). To a Kiriwinian,
however, it is not so fatal as it is to his European contem-
porary, for wigs are still used in that happy island (pi.
68). Either a narrow band of hair is tied just above the
forehead — a sort of fuzzy wreath — or a wig covering the
whole head is worn. The wig is made by sewing tufts of
hair on to a skull cap made of plaited fibre or string. The
hair is easily obtained, for mourning customs demand that
every member of the afflicted community, with the excep-
tion of the deceased's clansmen, shall shave off his beau-
tiful mop of hair.

Cutting off the hair is not the only mourning custom
which aims at the reduction of personal charm. The
transformation in appearance imposed by mourning em-
bodies, to a certain extent, the native idea of what is ugly.

1 For the hula myth cf. Argonauts, pp. 307-10 and 322-4, and Myfh in
Primitive Psychology, 1926.

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PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

The shaven head, the body blackened with a thick layer
of mixed grease and charcoal, colourless and purposely
soiled dress, no ornaments and no scents — these are the
outward signs of bereavement. The transformation un-
dergone by a woman in mourning is shown in the frontis-
piece, where two girls, equally pretty under normal con-
ditions, can be contrasted. In fact, the idea that the chief
mourner, especially the widow, should be made ugly so
that she may not attract other men, is explicitly stated by
natives, and is also implied in the whole scheme of mor-
tuary proceedings, apart from the alteration in appearance
(see ch. vi).

The essential conditions of personal charm are now
obvious 5 normal bodily build, health, absence of mental
and functional disorders, strong growth of hair, sound
teeth, and a smooth skin — all signs of vigour and of a
good constitution.

But an important caution must here be entered. Na-
tives speak with such horror about the various forms of
ugliness, and repulsion is so clearly discernible in their
behaviour that there is no temptation to doubt their word.
In fact, in games and amusements, an albino, an idiot, or
a man afflicted with skin disease is so completely left out
of the fun that his loneliness and isolation wake pity
even in the frigid heart of an ethnographer. Thus ob-
servation fully confirmed the verbal proposition in which
all the natives are agreed, that all such people are abso-
lutely debarred from sexual intercourse and that they
have to resort to solitary means of satisfaction. Never-
theless, I began to doubt its validity, when, in the course

292

REPULSION BY UGLINESS

of my field-work, this very proposition was adduced as
proof, with many illustrative examples, that a woman can
have children without sexual intercourse (see ch. vii, 3
and 4). Tilapo'i (to quote cases already mentioned) had
one child, Kurayana as many as sixj while a few albino
girls have been blessed with numerous offspring j yet: "No
man would approach them, they are so repulsive" was
made the major premise of the syllogism — though many
of my informants must have known better!

The more thorough research which followed my reali-
zation of this discrepancy revealed the astonishing fact
that strong and, no doubt, genuine physical repulsion does
not prevent a Melanesian from the sexual act. This prob-
ably has some connection with their manner of carrying
out this physiological activity. I was able to ascertain that
the ugliest and most repulsive people have, not only spo-
radic, but regular intercourse. Orato'u, a tonagowa —
meaning in this case, not an idiot but one afflicted with
defective speech and a repulsively deformed face — can
always obtain favours from the village beauties of Omara-
kana, the residence of the paramount chief, whose hench-
man he is and whose wives he is said to know intimately
enough. The albino seen on pi. 3 8 has had several noto-
rious love affairs. In most of the villages where I worked
I could mention a few old and thoroughly repulsive
women who were able, especially if they or their hus-
bands were of high rank, to obtain young and attractive
boys as lovers.

When I discussed this with my friend, the late Billy
Hancock of Gusaweta — a trader of exceptional intelli-

293

PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

gence and one of the finest men I have known — he told
me that he had long ago arrived at the same conclusion
independently, and quoted from memory a number of
striking instances, in some of which the women were re-
pugnant, as he said, "far beyond the toleration of a
drunken sailor." He also mentioned the experience of a
medical officer, especially appointed in the Trobriands for
the treatment of venereal disease. This official was once
baffled by finding all the boys in a community afflicted
with very virulent and obviously recent gonorrhea, while
all the women to be considered in this connection were as
yet quite healthy. Finally he obtained a confession from
one of his patients that he and his companions had copu-
lated among others with a woman so old, decrepit, and
ugly, that the medical officer had thankfully and unhesi-
tatingly omitted her in his several inspections. It was
found that she was the source of infection, and that she
had for a long time been active in persuading boys to
copulation. The boys, on discovery, tried to belittle the
fact and to present the whole matter as a joke, but they
were in reality rather mortified. The attitude of my in-
formants when I confronted them with such and similar
facts was also "ambivalent." They had to admit that
some people will copulate with repulsive women, but they
treated it simply as the sign that such people are of un-
sound mind.

This was one more of the several cases in which I found
how strongly convention (ideals of behaviour) obsesses
the mind of the natives, but only on the surface and con-
trolling their statements rather than their behaviour.

294

BEAUTY OF FACE AND BODY

Things about which he would not like even to speak,
much less admit to having done, a native simply denies
with consistency and vigour, although he is perfectly
aware that they do happen, perhaps even under his own
roof. Tout comme chez nous!

BEAUTY OF THE HUMAN FACE AND BODY

Vigour, vitality, and strength, a well-proportioned
body, a smooth and properly pigmented, but not too
dark skin are the basis of physical beauty for the native.
In all the phases of village life I have seen admiration
drawn and held by a graceful, agile and well-balanced
person. The same generalization can be inductively
drawn from what we shall say here of the native canons
of perfection in form and colour, bodily smell, quality of
voice, and grace of movement.

Since the natives have an extended view of each other's
bodies, there is no artificial barrier to their sesthetic interest
in themj nor are the various elements in erotic fascination
placed in the false perspective which makes our full Eu-
ropean clothing the instrument of artificial modesty as
well as of disguised allurement, so that an estimation of
erotic values is difficult and complex, and is based on
fashions in dress as well as on the appreciation of physical
beauty. With this advantage over us, it is a notable fact
that their main erotic interest is f ocussed on the human
head and face. In the formulas of beauty magic, in the
vocabulary of human attractions, as well as in the ar-

295

PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

senal of ornament and decoration, the human face — eyes,
mouth, nose, teeth, and hair — ^takes precedence. It must
be observed that the head plays an important part in magic
as an object for admiration, and not as the seat of the
erotic emotions, for these are placed in the lower part of
the belly. For the rest of the body, the breasts in the
woman and build and size in the man are most important,
with the colour and the quality of their skins. In certain
magical formulas, all the limbs and portions of the human
torso are enumerated, besides the features of the face and
head. In others, however, only the latter are mentioned.

The outline of the face is very important 5 it should be
full and well rounded. The phrases miltyaflla (like the
full moon) j ifnilibwata (like the round moon) ; kalubu-
hovatu (its roundness), appear frequently in magical for-
mulas. The forehead must be small and smooth. The
word talisalisa (to smooth) recurs in beauty charms. Full
cheeks, a chin neither protruding nor too small, a com-
plete absence of hair on the face, but the scalp hair de-
scending well on to the forehead, are all desiderata of
beauty.

Cosmetics are used on the face more than on any other
part of the body. Facial painting {soba) is done in black,
red, and white (pi. 76). For the red, either a compound
of betel-nut and lime is used or red ochre. Certain forms
of clay, sometimes mixed with crushed coral, were for-
merly used to produce white 5 but nowadays European
white lead has taken the place of this, though red is still
usually made with native pigments. Black can be put on,
either with simple charred coco-nut fibre or some other

296

BEAUTY OF FACE AND BODY

form of charcoal, or else with a mixture of this and an
aromatic oil, prepared by cutting aromatic wood into small
pieces and boiling it in coco-nut oil. The wood preferred
in this preparation is called sayakuy and it is, I think,
sandal wood imported from the eastern islands (Wood-
lark and Marshall Bennett). A similar though less ap-
preciated wood, kadikokoy is found in the Trobriands and
can be used for the same purpose. The strongly scented
mixture is kept in coco-nut oil bottles and used for the
tracing of fine lines on the face. The natives make a
clear distinction between decorative painting {soba)j which
enhances their beauty, and smothering themselves in soot
{koido) in order to extinguish all their attractions in sign
of mourning.

Having indicated the general character of facial beauty,
let us proceed to the details. The eyes, as we know, are
to the natives the gateways of erotic desire (ch. vii, i)j
they are also, in themselves, a centre of erotic interest.
Biting off the eyelashes, the custom of muakuku as it is
called, plays an important part in love-making. The
expression agu mitakuku ("my bitten-off eyelashes") is a
term of endearment. The eyes are frequently referred
to in the magic of beauty: mitayan (shining eyes) ^ mituh-
woyili (lovely eyes) 5 mitapwa^i (bright eyes). Eyes
should be shining, but they should be small. On this
point the natives are quite decided. Large eyes, fuynor-
fuynay are ugly. There is no special beauty treatment
for the eyes, except, of course, shaving the eyebrows
which, together with the biting ofF of eyelashes, leaves
them singularly naked to European taste. Neither is any

297

PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

magic specifically devoted to their lustre and other charms.

Next to the eyes, the mouth is, perhaps, the most im-
portant feature. It plays a conspicuous part in love-mak-
ing, and its beauty is highly esteemed in native aesthetics.
It should be very full, but well cut. Protruding lips
{ka^uvala^u wadola) are considered as unattractive as
pinched or thin ones {kaywoya wadola). Very ugly, I
was told, is a hanging lower lip. There is a special magic
of beauty associated with the mouth. It is the magic of
taloy the red paint made of betel-nut, which is used to
redden the lips.

The nose should be full and fleshy, but not too large.
A nose, which the natives call kafatatdy that is long, nar-
row and sharp, in short aquiline, is ugly. A beautiful
nose is called kabuUtoto (standing-up nose), for too flat
a one is also a serious blemish, and men or women so
handicapped are called tonafa^i or nanapaH according to
sex. A nose-stick used to be considered aesthetically in-
dispensable, but it is now gradually going out of fashion,
and there is no magic associated with this ornament or its
organ.

The ears must be neither too small nor too large — a
safe rule to follow for all parts of the body, whether in
the Trobriands or elsewhere. Ears that stand out from
the head {tiginayd) are distinctly ugly. Every ear must
be pierced at the lobe and ornamented with ear-rings.
The hole is made early in childhood by placing on the
ear a turtle shell ring which has been cut and the ends
sharpened, so that the points gradually work their way
through the gristle. The resultant small hole is then

298

BEAUTY OF FACE AND BODY

gradually enlarged until a considerable opening sur-
rounded by a pendulous ring is formed in the lobe. This
is filled with ear-rings of turtle shell and other orna-
ments, especially red discs made of spondylus shell. Such
treatment of the ear is de rigueurj otherwise a man or
woman would be said to have tegibwalodila (ears like a
bush pig).

Teethj in order to be really attractive, have to be black-
ened {kuduhwa^u: literally black teeth, or gigiremutu: an
expression for the process). This blackening is done by
placing a piece of a special mangrove root against the
teeth overnight and repeating the process over a long pe-
riod. The majority of the Trobrianders do not, however,
blacken their teeth.

Hair in its proper place is considered a great beauty,
but, as we know, it must not be allowed to grow anywhere
except on the scalp. Eyebrows are shaved off, the beard
is never allowed to grow except by old men "who do not
wish to have anything to do with women." Hair is never
pulled out J it is always shaved, in the old days with ob-
sidian, at present with bottle glass. The hair on the head
is admired when it is very full, and then it is allowed to
grow into a thick mop of which almost every hair radi-
ates from the scalp, in the manner so characteristic of
Melanesia.

The natives distinguish black, light and grey hair
{yahwahwa^Uy yadidaydaya and yasoso^u). The albino
is called tofwaka^Uy "man with white hair," or tososo^Uy
"man with grey hair." They further classify it as
straight-to-wavy (yasinare^i or yasisiye^i) ; curly {yasusay-

299

PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

hulu)\ thick and moppy {yamtumwatu)\ tangled and
almost matted {yakulufaki or yatutuya). The two mid-
dle qualities are considered beautiful 5 but the straight-to-
wavy and the matted kinds are not. As to the trimming
and dressing of it, the really typical Melanesian mop,
gugwafo^Uy is the favourite mode. When it is cut round
the sides and back and left long on top, giving the head
an elongated cylindrical form, it is called bobobu. Some-
times when a man comes out of mourning, the hair is
allowed to grow in the middle of the head, while the
edges are kept shaved 5 this is called takwadoya. Hair
which is growing after mourning is called sayva^u while
it is still short. Persons of rank in mourning have the
privilege of leaving some hair at the back of the head
near the nape of the neck (pi. 25). This grows into long
strands which are plaited sometimes and are called saysuya
(literally, "ringlets").

Body hair {unu^unu — a word also given to the growth
on yam tubers, on the backs of leaves and so forth) is
regarded as ugly and is kept shaven. Only in myth and
in fairy tale do certain people appear who are covered
with unu^unu'y to the natives a grotesque and at the same
time a perverse characteristic.

Hair dressing plays a great part in the personal toilet.
Trimming is done by means of a sharpened mussel shell
{kaniku) and the hair is cut off in tufts against a piece
of wood. It is combed or teased with a long-pronged
wooden comb {smata)'j and one of the most important
types of beauty magic is done over the comb. We have
seen that teasing out the hair {fulufuluy wayfulu or

300

BEAUTY OF FACE AND BODY

waynoku) is the centre of certain festivals {kayasa)j
which are really organized solely for the display of this
beauty. Nails are cut and trimmed with sharpened mus-
sel shell.

A slim, straight, tall body is much admired in a man.
Kaysakiy like a "swift long canoe," kuytubo^ like a rounded:
tree, are both terms of praise, of which the latter shows-
that emaciation is not an asset. Kaylohu — well adorned,,
well trimmed — expresses the same idea. All three words
occur in the lament of a widow for her young husbands

In women, also, a slim body without excessive ab-
dominal development is considered desirable. Kaygumita
(slirn), nasasaka (small-bellied), are words of praise.
Napofoma (pot-bellied), nasoka (with the body like a
globe-fish), on the contrary, express disapproval.

A woman's breasts are of special importance. The
same word nunu is used to describe the female breast,
the nipple in man or woman, the central portion of the
male chest, and milk. There are a number of partly
metaphorical, partly specific expressions to describe the
sesthetic appearance of the female breasts. Nutaviya
(like the taviya^ a small round fruit) describes a full,
round, firm formation j and nufiyakwa, a word the ety-
mology of which I was unable to trace, has the same
connotation. Nupfisiga or nupisiga is applied to small,
undeveloped, girlish breasts, which are considered less
attractive than the first category. For flabby breasts the
word nusawewo is used, a compound of the specific prefix
nu and the word sawewby to hang limply down, as, for
instance, a ripe fruit hangs. Another apt simile is con-

301

PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

tained in the word nukaybwibwiy in which long, thin,
pendent breasts are compared to the aerial roots of the
pandanus tree. Breasts wrinkled and flabby with age are
called fwanunuy the prefix px)a meaning deterioration
and nunu being the specific noun. The meaning of this
word has become extended to describe wrinkled skin in
general.

Firm, well-developed breasts are admirable in a
woman. Adolescent girls massage (j*uwoli) their breasts,
which then may also be called nu*ulawolu (literally, mas-
saged breasts). When a lover prefers his girl with small
breasts, he will say, yoku tage kuwoU nunum; kwunufisiga
("Do not thou massage thy breasts, remain with girlish
breasts").

To return to physical beauty in general, it has already
been mentioned that smoothness of skin and a full brown
colour are much sought after. In magical formulas,
smooth objects with a pleasant surface are often men-
tioned in this connection: fish without scales, trees with
smooth bark, smooth, rounded shells. As to the colour,
dark brown is decidedly a disadvantage. In the magic of
washing and in other beauty formulae, a desirable skin is
compared with white flowers, moonlight, and the morning
star. Pregnancy magic has already given us an example
of this ideal of bodily perfection. But deficient pigmen-
tation is not admired 5 and the insipid, pale yellowish
brown which is sometimes found, is as unpleasant to the
Trobriander as to the European. Albinos, with their
flaxen hair and long golden body fluff, their enormous

302

CARE OF THE BODY

freckles, as if something dirty and brown had been
splashed over them, produce an unpleasant impression on
European and native alike (pi. 38).

THE CARE OF THE BODY

The main care of the body is directed to cleanliness.
The natives have an extreme sensitiveness to smell and to
bodily dirt. Kakaya (bathing, or washing all over with
plenty of water) is the first act in all ceremonial orna-
mentation, and is a frequent one at other times. The
natives often rinse their hands and wash their faces, such
minor ablutions being called wini. Washing before a
grand toilet is always followed by anointing {futuma)
with coco-nut oil, which gives a fine lustre to the skin and
is also a strong and lasting deodorizer. If possible, some
perfume is added to the oil: pandanus flower, gayawOy the
aromatic butia blossom, and other scented flowers and
herbs according to the season, are used for this purpose j
as is the aromatic paint, sayakuy which has already been
mentioned.

Dried and bleached leaves are the material for native
dress, the men using the pandanus — or, to produce a
garment of a finer quality, the areca palm — and the
women, banana leaves (see pi. 69). Their dress is of the
slightest, especially for men, who only wear a pubic leaf.
This is a narrow band which covers the pubic regions, the
lower part of the abdomen, and the back up to the first

303

PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

lumbar vertebrae. The band is attached, front and back,
to a belt. Usually above this support the man wears
another ornamental belt, made sometimes of valuable
material. The pubic leaf is very carefully adjusted, so
that the limited area which modesty demands should be
hidden remains always precisely and carefully covered.
Men very seldom take off their pubic leaf, except in
the intimacy of their sleeping place. Only when fish-
ing or bathing with other men is it removed. The word
yavi- (pubic leaf) takes the same suffixed possessive pro-
nouns as are only otherwise used with parts of the human
body (yavigu, my leaf j yavim, thy leaf j yavila, his leaf j
and so on). This gives a grammatical expression to the
intimate union of this garment with the male body.

Women wear skirts made of narrow strips of vegetable
fibre, variously prepared and coloured. A full descrip-
tion of the technology of Trobriand "models" and of
feminine psychology in the always important matter of
dress would lead to a voluminous dissertation. To be
brief: women wear an underskirt and a top skirt. At
home and among intimate friends and when at work, the
top skirt is taken off, and only the petticoat remains (see
pis. 9, 1 8, 21 ). This is usually shabby and always scanty;
but it adequately fulfils all the demands of modesty.
The overskirts are full and sometimes very thick. At
ordinary seasons and for ordinary purposes they are not
artificially stained and show only their natural rich gold-
and-silver colour of dried coco-nut or banana leaf. In
times of mourning and during menstruation, slightly
longer skirts are worn. For bathing or during rain, coco-

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CARE OF THE BODY

nut fibre Is preferred to other materials. The greatest
variety of colour and form is seen in the gala skirts worn
during harvest and at festivities (pis. 13, 61, 69). These
display radiant combinations of colour, all the range of
materials available and great ingenuity in "cut." The
word for the female garment is dohay also used with
aifixes of nearest possession. In its compound form it
changes some of its vowels, as dabegUy my skirt, daheryiy
dahelay and so forth.

The more important ornaments have already been
mentioned incidentally. The natives adorn themselves
with wreaths of aromatic blossom j put flowers, especially
the red hibiscus, in their hair, and aromatic herbs or long
leaves and streamers into their armlets. Necklaces of
shell and wild banana seed are worn, and armlets on the
upper arm. All men and women wear ear-rings and
belts.

The body, as distinguished from the face, is very sel-
dom painted, and no tattoo markings are ever visible. I
am told that girls at the time of their first menstruation
are tattooed round the vagina. This tattooing is called
k?uk?Uy and is done, according to my informants, for
aesthetic purposes. Also men and women burn marks on
their forearms, as an adornment.

One more personal charm must be mentioned — ^the
voice. The good singer is only second in renown to the
good dancer. The power of a beautiful voice is known
and praised far and wide, and many instances of seduc-
tion by song are quoted. Perhaps the most notorious is

305

PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

that of Mokadayu, whose success. with the fair sex cul-
minated in an incestuous liaison with his own sister, one
of the most beautiful girls in the village/

As a background to Trobriand ideals of beauty, it may
be interesting to hear the natives' comments on other
racial types. Though other natives are generally consid-
ered less attractive than one's own tribe, distinctions are
made and degrees of ugliness gradated. The pure Papuan
type from the Papuan Gulf and from the northern coast,
who are now frequently seen in the Trobriands with white
men, are undoubtedly classed as the least attractive.
Their ugliness is chiefly ascribed to their dark skin; it is,
in fact, much darker than the Trobriander's, and has a
characteristic chocolate tinge. Their pronouncedly frizzy
hair and their strange manner of dressing it in plaits and
fringes is also regarded as very unbecoming. Unattrac-
tive, too, are their prominent thin lips and their large,
aquiline, almost Jewish noses, set in a long narrow face.
These criticisms were made to me on the occasion of a
series of dances performed by Papuan Gulf natives who
had been employed on one of the plantations. Their
dancing was genuinely admired, but not their physical
appearance. The Dobuans with their dark skin, their
thick-set build, and their short necks, are often made fun
of by the Trobrianders. The more distant natives from
the Eastern Archipelagos, the Southern Massim, receive
much higher marks for beauty. In spite of the fact that
they are more distant strangers to the Trobrianders than

1 Compare Sex and Repression, 1927, part ii, ch. iv, and ch. xiv, 3, of
this work, where the story of Mokadayu is given.

306

CARE OF THE BODY

are the Dobuans, the natives realize that they are racially
akin and say: "They are like us, fine-looking."

Europeans, the natives frankly say, are not good-look-
ing. The straight hair "coming round the heads of
women like threads of im^^ (coarse pandanus fibre used
for making strings) 5 the nose, "sharp like an axe blade" j
the thin lips 5 the big eyes, "like water puddles" 3 the
white skin with spots on it like those of an albino — all
these the natives say (and no doubt feel) are ugly. It
is only fair to observe, in justice to their good manners
and personal urbanity, that they were quick to add that
the ethnographer was a meritorious exception to the rule.
They always told me that I looked much more like a
Melanesian than like an ordinary white man. They even
fortified this compliment by specific documentation: thick
lips, small eyes, absence of any sharp outline in the nose,
were credited to me as assets. The only points on which
they were discreet and honest enough not to compliment
me were my forehead and my hair. I am afraid, how-
ever, that the Trobrianders are more polite than truthful,
and it must be remembered that personal praise is by right
of custom always repaid with a suitable gift of tobacco or
betel-nut, which, rather than sesthetic conviction, may
have been the motive of the compliment (see, however,
pi. 68).

It is clear, then, that the Trobrianders prefer their
own racial type, and that this is not mere parochial con-
ceit, since they make reasoned distinctions between other
types and give praise where it is due. Thus the Southern
Massim they regard as their equals 5 and are even ready

307

PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

to admit that the Eastern portion of the Northern Mas-
sim, the natives of Woodlark Island and the Marshall
Bennett group, are their superiors in personal appearance.
I may add that, in common with all strangers, I was less
susceptible at first to individual differences and more im-
pressed by the general type. But with greater familiarity,
I also came to feel that too dark or too yellow a skin, too
straight or too frizzy hair, a mouth as thin as that of a.
European, and an aquiline nose were features unpleasant
in a Melanesian. At the same time I became able to ap-
preciate beauty within the racial type and de facto always
knew more or less who would be attractive to a native,
and who not. Even the artificial transformations — shiny
black teeth in thick vermilion lips, graceful scrolls painted
in three colours over the face, flaming hibiscus blossoms
in the thick black mop of hair, golden brown skins, glossy
with coco-nut oil — ceased to impress me as mere grotesque
masquerade, and I saw them as becoming adjuvants to
personal beauty. After all, it takes us some time to be-
come accustomed to the changing fashions of our own
race and to detect beauty where at first we were only able
to see caricature.

I still remember the feeling of slight surprise at the
formula of beauty with which the old chief To'uluwa
started my first discussion of the subject:

^^Migila bubowatu; matala kuvikekita;

"Face his (hers) rounded^ eye his (hers) small 5

kabulula kaykekita; kudula sene

nose his (hers) small ^ tooth his (hers) very

308

COURSE OF AN INTRIGUE

kobwabwa^U'y kulula sene kohuhowatu?^

blackened j hair his (hers) very rounded off."

This terse sentence roughly summarizes the results of our
study, and gives an approximate standard of personal
beauty. It presents a blend of cultural values, biological
impulses and racial preferences. The point of view can
be understood by a European 5 that is, if he can maintain
the feeling of human or biological solidarity across racial
and cultural differences, and a sufficient mental plasticity
to become thoroughly familiar with the cultural and
aesthetic standards of another people.

THE COURSE OF AN INTRIGUE

To understand the effect of personal charm on the na-
tive, it may be helpful to present a typical Trobriand
love affair against the background of Western romance.

Love is precipitated with them, as with us, by the first
shock received from beauty and personality j but a world
of customary and cultural differences divides the after-
effects of this. The initial barriers preventing a rapid
sexual intimacy between two people in love, which are so
characteristic of all higher civilizations, for us endow the
beloved with inestimable virtues and enclose him or her
in an aura of holy and mysterious desirability. In men
whose creative imagination is developed beyond their
practical sense of the realities, such passionate attachments
may lead simply to day-dreaming and excessive shyness

309

PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

in the romantic relation, or to such outpourings as we find
in Vita Nuova or Petrarch's Sonnets. This shy, self-
centred adoration, this extreme creative exaltation of the
eternal-feminine — of the Beatrice or Gretchen leading
man into the presence of God — is a real type of Western
romance, standardized in some of the highest works of
art, but existing also in many not gifted with the power
of self-expression. The reaction against this same arti-
ficially fostered mystery and the consequent idealization
of woman, is seen with opposite results in the invective
and indictment of Schopenhauer and Nietzsche.

The man in the street, who sustains the same shock,
does not write sonnets, but none the less he surrounds
the object of his serious affection with a more temperate
exaltation and worship. At the same time his emotion
finds practical expression, and he seeks every opportunity
for closer acquaintance. If liking ripens into mutual love,
the affair will follow the customary course of courtship,
engagement, and marriage. A man and woman may be
driven by natural passion to the final consummation,
athwart all social or moral rules, but it is none the less
true that real love leads men and women of our culture,
not to the direct satisfaction of the sexual urge, but to a
gradual blending of sensuous elements with the general
spiritual attraction. Personal intimacy in a full common
life, legally sanctioned, is the direct goal of our romantic
ideology, and the rest, including sexual relations, follows
as a tacit implication.

Let us turn to an average Melanesian youth attracted
by a girl who is not put beyond his reach by the taboos

310

COURSE OF AN INTRIGUE

of kinship, social standing, or too great a difference in
personal charm. In him, also, the first impression pro-
duces an aesthetic and sensuous reaction which transforms
its cause into something desirable, valuable, and worthy
of strenuous effort. But the feeling of mystery, the desire
to worship at a distance or merely to be admitted into her
presence, is not there. The Trobriand boy has had many
sexual experiences with girls of the same type as his new
ideal 3 and, from childhood, the attraction of beauty and
direct erotic approach have been intimately associated in
his experience. He has not to stumble upon the final ful-
filment of erotic desire, he immediately anticipates it. All
the customs, arrangements, and codes of behaviour dic-
tate simple, direct approach, as we shall see in the fol-
lowing description.

An interesting sidelight is thrown upon Trobriand
courtship by the customs in other Melanesian communi-
ties, where sexual freedom is much more restricted, and
where the gradual approach and something of romantic
love exist. In the nearest ethnographic region to the
south, the Amphletts, and in the next one to this, which
is inhabited by the Dobuan tribe, prenuptial intercourse
is regarded as reprehensible, and custom does not en-
courage the free mixing of children in erotic games nor
open untrammelled intercourse between boys and girls,
nor institutions such as the bukumatula (bachelors' and
girls' house). From a limited experience in the Am-
phletts, I received the impression that prenuptial inter-
course hardly exists at all, and in Dobu it is certainly much
more restricted than in the Trobriands. Correlated with

311

PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

this, we find a number of arrangements which allow of a
prolonged courtship and which are symptomatic of a love
not specifically directed towards sexual intercourse. I was
told that both districts have love songs and that the boys
court by playing on pan-pipes or on a Jew's-harp j also
that boys and girls meet at games and in amusements for
the sake of personal acquaintance and social intercourse
only. During the later stages of courtship and before
marriage, a boy is allowed to visit his betrothed at her
parents' house, but there is no cohabitation, and only con-
versation and caresses pass between them. A similar state
of affairs exists with the Western Papuo-Melanesian
tribes, among several of whom I conducted more or less
prolonged investigations. These data, however, I submit
with caution, and they are in no way comparable to my
observations among the Trobrianders. They are based
entirely on statements obtained from informants ad hocy
and not on the spontaneous material which comes to hand
with long residence in a country.^

The love-sick Trobriander, however, taught by custom
to be direct in amorous pursuits, proceeds at once to the
approved methods of approach.

The simplest of these is direct personal solicitation.
From previous descriptions of sexual licence, we know
that there are numerous opportunities for a boy to express
his desire, or for a girl to induce him to do so (see ch. ix).
This is perfectly easy within the same village community.

Australia, 1915, pp. 559-64, and the references there given

Seligman, op. cit.

312

COURSE OF AN INTRIGUE

When the two belong to different villages, certain fes-
tivals bring them together j they can speak to each other,
and indulge in the preliminaries of love during games
and dances, and in crowds j also they can arrange a future
meeting. After that, by the ulatile and katuyausi cus-
toms, the meetings can be repeated, or one of the lovers
may move to the other's village.

Another method is that of solicitation by an interme-
diary {kaykivt). This is used when the two communities
are distant and, owing to the season, no personal approach
is possible. A mutual friend, male or female, is begged
to express the boy's admiration and to arrange for a ren-
dezvous. The kaykivi is not, as a rule, lightly set in mo-
tion, for its failure, if this becomes public, draws down
considerable ridicule on the solicitor. But if direct ap-
proach and the kaykivi are both for some reason impos-
sible, the lover uses the most powerful way of wooing,
that of magic, as the first step in his attack. It is suffi-
cient to say in this place that almost all final success in
love is attributed to magic, that both men and women be-
lieve in it deeply and trust it completely, and that, be-
cause of this psychological attitude, it is very efficacious.
But a full account of love magic will be given in the fol-
lowing chapter.

Thus there is nothing roundabout in a Trobriand woo-
ing j nor do they seek full personal relations, with sexual
possession only as a consequence. Simply and directly a
meeting is asked for with the avowed intention of sexual
gratification. If the invitation is accepted, the satisfaction
of the boy's desire eliminates the romantic frame of mind,

313

PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

the craving for the unattainable and mysterious. If he is
rejected, there is not much room for personal tragedy,
for he is accustomed from childhood to having his sexual
impulses thwarted by some girls, and he knows that an-
other intrigue cures this type of ill surely and swiftly.

CASES OF PERSONAL ATTACHMENT

Though the social code does not favour romance, ro-
mantic elements and imaginative personal attachments
are not altogether absent in Trobriand courtship and
marriage. This will become clear if we review the three
phases of the love life of an individual discussed in chap-
ter iii. In the easy erotic play of children, sympathies
and antipathies arise, and personal preferences declare
themselves. Such early sympathetic attractions some-
times strike quite deep. From several of my friends I
learned that their marriage had its roots in a childish af-
fection. Tokulubakiki and his wife knew and liked one
another as children. Toyodala, whom I saw in despair
after his wife's death, had been a friend of hers in child-
hood (see ch. vi, sec. 4). Similar conclusions can be
drawn from observation of children and stories of their
behaviour. In a small way they try to win, to impress,
and to catch the imagination of their playmates. Thus
even at this stage some elements of romance are mixed
with the direct sexuality of their playing.

At the second stage, when boys and girls amuse them-
selves freely with love-making, personal preferences are

314

PERSONAL ATTACHMENTS

even more pronounced. They change frequently, but
their imagination and feelings are unquestionably engaged
for the time being. It is not difficult to overhear boys
discussing the beautiful girls by whom they are attracted.
One boy will praise his fancy while another disputes her
supremacy j and, in this argument, the amorous yearnings
of each will find expression.

As to concrete instances, it was rather difficult for me
to collect any circumstantial data about either children or
adolescent boys or girls. But at the later stage, where
attraction ripens into desire for marriage and matters are
treated much more seriously, I had several opportunities
for observation. The case of Mekala'i, a boy temporarily
in my service, has already been mentioned (see ch. iv,
sec. 2). He was seriously in love with Bodulela, of
whom it was notorious that she slept with her stepfather.
The boy was very deeply attached to her, and though
there was no chance for him to possess her in the imme-
diate future, and he was not even allowed to visit her,
for months he nourished hopes and plans for ultimately
winning her. He was also obviously concerned to appear
before her as a man of importance and influence. Another
boy, Monakewo, had a liaison with Dabugera, who be-
longed to the highest rank. He often bewailed his low
rank, which he knew would prevent his marriage with her
(see ch. iv, sec. i). This disability he tried to write off
by personal achievement. He boasted of his fine voice,
his skill in dancing, his many abilities — some of which
really existed — and how Dabugera valued these. When
for a few days she was unfaithful to him, he would be

315

PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

evidently mortified j and on each of these occasions he
wanted to persuade me to sail away from the island and
take him with me, at the same time dwelling in imagina-
tion on how greatly she would be impressed by this deci-
sive step, and on the fine presents he would bring back
to her.

There are also cases on record where a man wants to
marry a girl, does not at first succeed, but after a long
period of yearning, wins his first choice. Sayabiya, a
rather good-looking girl, had a lover from her own vil-
lage, Yalaka, whom she was going to marry. Tomeda, a
handsome man from Kasana'i, famous for his strength,
his efficiency in gardening and his skill in dancing, made
an impression on her and finally persuaded her to marry
him. On my first visit to the Trobriands, I used to see a
great deal of both of them, and found her one of the
really attractive women, and him a very good informant.
When I returned, two years later, he was living alone,
for she had gone back to her former lover and married
him (see ch. v, sec. i). Magic, of course, was blamed,
but unquestionably it was a return to the first love. My
friend Tomeda was extremely depressed for a long time,
and used often to speak to me about his lost lady with
obvious longing. I left the district and did not see him
for some six months, but a few days before sailing from
the Trobriands I met him, painted and adorned on his
way to another village — obviously in the role of a hopeful
suitor, a to^ulaule. When I chaffed him, he confessed
smiling that he had a new girl whom he was hoping to
marry soon.

316

PERSONAL ATTACHMENTS

Another tangled amour was that of Yobukwa'u, a son
of the chief To'uluwa (see ch. iv, sec. i, and ch. v, sec.
5). His sweetheart, Ilaka'isi, was married, for reasons of
state, to his father, as the youngest of some twenty-four
wives. After this the young man took another girl, Ise-
puna, whom he meant to marry. But he was unable to
withstand the proximity of his former sweetheart, and it
became notorious throughout Omarakana, the chief's resi-
dence, that he slept regularly with his father's youngest
wife. This deeply offended his betrothed. At the same
time Yobukwa'u's younger brother, Kalogusa, returned
from a year's service on an overseas plantation. He was
struck by his elder brother's betrothed, Isepuna, and an
attachment sprang up between them. The situation was
very difficult, for it is an extremely bad thing to take
away a brother's betrothed from him. But love was
stronger than moral considerations. Isepuna broke with
Yobukwa'u and became engaged to Kalogusa. They were
married a few months after my arrival in Omarakana. It
may be added that in the meantime, Yobukwa'u married
a very unattractive girl, Losa, but gossip has it that he
and Ilaka'isi are still lovers.

Almost identical was the story of Gilayviyaka, an elder
brother of Yobukwa'u (see ch. v, sec. 5). He also had
slept with Nabwoyuma before her marriage to his father.
Subsequently he married Bulubwaloga, a really attrac-
tive lightly pigmented brown-haired woman from Yalu-
mugwa, to whom he was deeply attached. This, how-
ever, did not prevent his nightly visits to Nabwoyuma.
His wife did not relish these, and spied on him 3 and he

317

PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

was caught one night in flagrante delicto^ with the result
that a very big public scandal quite overwhelmed him.
He had to leave the village for some time, and his wife
returned to her people. During my stay in the village^
a couple of years after the event, he made several attempts
to get his wife back, and was obviously feeling his loss
keenly. On my last return to the Trobriands, I learned
that he had signed on as a plantation hand, come home
after a year, and died a few months before my arrival.
The hopeless attachment of Ulo Kadala has already been
mentioned (ch. iv, sec. i). One case at least of suicide
because of an unhappy love affair has been given to me
by the natives.^

In these examples we find elements of what we our-
selves mean by love: imagination and an attempt to woo
the heart through the imagination rather than by a direct
appeal to the senses 3 steadfast preference, and repeated
attempts at possession. In many of them, there is a pro-
nounced appreciation of the personality loved and of its
power to enrich life or leave it empty. These elements
certainly appear in unfamiliar combinations and in a per-
spective strange to us. The attitude to sex is different,
and therefore certain characteristic elements of the West-
ern sentiment are absent. A platonic attachment would
be impossible. Above all most of the personal initia-
tive in wooing is replaced to a considerable extent by the
practice of magic. Such generalizations can only be ap-
proximate, but the facts given in this chapter and inci-
dentally throughout the book, will enable the careful

1 Cf. Crime and Custom, p. 95.

318

COMMERCIAL ASPECT OF LOVE

reader to gauge the differences between love and love-
making in the Trobriands and in our culture.

THE COMMERCIAL ASPECT OF LOVE

There is an interesting side to Trobriand love that
might either escape the attention of the superficial ob-
server, or give rise to many misunderstandings. In the
course of every love affair the man has constantly to give
small presents to the woman. To the natives the need of
one-sided payment is self-evident. This custom implies
that sexual intercourse, even where there is mutual attach-
ment, is a service rendered by the female to the male.
As such it has to be repaid in accordance with the rule of
reciprocity or give-and-take, which pervades tribal life,
so that every gift, every service and every favour must
be paid by something of equivalent value. The reward
for sexual favours is called huwa^ and the word is used
with the suffix of nearest possession {huwagUy huwaniy
buwalay etc.). This is perhaps merely a grammatical
archaism. If not, it expresses an extremely close relation
between the gift and both the giver and the receiver: in
other words, that the gift is an essential part of the trans-
action, as indeed it is.

This rule is by no means logical or self-evident. Con-
sidering the great freedom of women ,and their equality
with men in all matters, especially that of sex, considering
also that the natives fully realize that women are as in-
clined to intercourse as men, one would expect the sexual

319

PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

relation to be regarded as an exchange of services in itself
reciprocal. But custom, arbitrary and inconsequent here
as elsewhere, decrees that it is a service from women to
men, and men have to pay.

As to the size and nature of the gift, this varies with
the type of sexual relationship. As we have seen, even
small boys, imitating their elders in every detail, will
give their sweethearts some small gift: a pinch of tobacco,
a shell, or simply a blossom. Boys of riper years have
to give a more substantial present: half a stick of tobacco,
a betel-nut or two, and, from time to time, a turtle-shell
ring, a shell disc, or even an armlet. Otherwise a girl
would object: Gala huwaniy afaykiy "You have no pay-
ment to give me — I refuse." And his reputation for
meanness would spread, and interfere with his future
conquests. In the later and more permanent intrigues,
especially when they grow towards marriage, it is usual
to give substantial presents from time to time rather than
a small gift every morning.

When marriage is concluded, payment for sexual inter-
course becomes the complicated family affair described in
chapter v, in which husband and wife, their household
and the wife's family, father and children, children and
maternal uncle are all involved. The personal account
between husband and wife consists in her offering him
permanent sexual accommodation, which he repays by all
he gives to the children in love, care, and goods. The
children, as we know, are regarded as legally hers, and
not his. The early cares he bestows on the children, their
education, and even his love for them are accounted for

320

JEALOUSY

by this obligation. "The payment for sleeping with the
mother," "the payment for sexual services of the mother"
and similar phrases are repeated when the subject is dis-
cussed. Thus the commercial aspect of love also, and
very definitely, obtains in marriage.^

It must, however, be clearly understood that the word
"commercial" is merely used to describe the give-and-take
principle in erotic relations, and that this principle is here,
as in all other social relations, but one, and that not the
most significant, aspect of them. Above all, it would be
entirely erroneous to draw any parallel with forms of
prostitution in higher cultures. The essence of prostitu-
tion is that payment is the woman's motive for surrender.
In the Trobriands, love-making is as spontaneous on the
part of the girl as on the part of the boy. The gift is a
custom, not a motive. The institution is much more akin
to our custom of giving presents to a fiancee or to some-
one whom we merely admire than to the institution of
purely commercialized sexual services, which are the es-
sence of prostitution.

JEALOUSY

One more question intimately concerned with the prob-
lem of personal attraction remains to be discussed. Love
strives not only for possession but for monopoly 5 hence
the strong emotional reaction of jealousy. It has been

1 Cf. Argonauts, pp. 177, 178, where I have incorrectly classed the
father's gifts to his children as "free gifts." The rectification of this
error will be found in Crime and Custom, pp. 40, 41.

'^21

PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

affirmed by several ethnographers of tribes with great
sexual freedom, that jealousy does not exist among them.
In support of this, nothing more is adduced than the
simple fact of licence. But the connection between licence
and the absence of jealousy is by no means self-evident.

In the Trobriands, in spite of considerable licence, jeal-
ousy certainly exists. A man who desires a girl will not
easily give way to a rival, as the frequent quarrels and
fights occasioned by sexual rivalry bear witness. Nor will
a man who has established some rights over a woman,
whether of marriage or of engagement, or merely of a
liaison, tolerate any infringement of these. There exists
among them, in fact, both the jealousy of passion and
that colder type based on ambition, power, and possession.
As we know, relations within the hukumatula (bachelors'
and unmarried girls' house) are subject to a definite code,
and the infringement of individual rights is deeply re-
sented and considered reprehensible. As we also know,
adultery is a grave offence, punishable even by death.
Among young boys and girls serious enmities and fights
have been known to arise from one encroaching on the
preserves of another, and even among children, fights are
occasioned by jealousy.

This passion, however, is, as are all others, susceptible
to social influence. When custom demands that a man
should surrender his sweetheart, and this can be honour-
ably done, he will submit. This happens, as we know, in
the case of visiting kula strangers, and of youths who are
guests in a village where a death has recently occurred.
Also, there are occasions, less readily condoned, where

322

JEALOUSY

girls go on a katuyausi or steal out of the village to meet
an ulatile party.

I was impressed by what might be called the reverse
side of j ealousy. The way in which boys would complain
to me about such custom-sanctioned defection j the way
in which they dwelt on the subject and described it with
apparent depression, but not without some morbid curi-
osity 3 and the insistence with which they would return
to itj gave me the impression that there was for them
some element of pleasurable excitement in the situation.
Whether jealousy among the Trobrianders is an emotion
with two almost directly contradictory feeling-tones which
alternate, the one strongly unpleasant, and the other
somewhat pleasurable and sexually stimulating, it is diffi-
cult to say. But one or two facts as to the relation be-
tween native women and white men throw additional
light on the subject.

Thus it is a notorious fact that Sinakadi, an important
but impecunious chief of Sinaketa, prostitutes his wives to
white men. He is old now, and is said to have married
a young girl specially for this purpose j but he began the
practice long ago, according to common report, even be-
fore a government station was established on the Tro-
briands. One of his sons, now a young man, is doing
exactly the same thing. A white trader told me that he
knew a native who seemed very much attached to and
extremely jealous of his comely young wife. This native
used to procure girls for the trader. On one occasion
when he was unable to find anyone else, he brought his
wife, and waited for her on the doorstep. Such facts

PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

throw an interesting side-light on the working o£ jealousy
in these natives.

The social, cultural, and directly emotional motives in
jealousy will be more easily isolated by distinguishing its
several types with their corresponding sanctions. In the
first place there is jealousy which springs from infringe-
ment of rights rather than from thwarted instincts or
wounded feeling. The taboo on the chief's wives is an
example, and in former times was extremely strict. Even
in the case of a very old man, who was neither attached
to his young wives nor even living with them, adultery
would constitute a capital offence. The misconduct of
To'uluwa's wives with his sons, a case in point already
quoted, and the adultery of the wife of M'tabalu, would
never have been condoned in the old days. But even the
wife of a commoner, if caught in fiagrantey might have
been killed with her lover. This kind of jealousy, arising
from purely social considerations, is also expressed in the
close watch kept over the widow by the dead man's rela-
tives.

In the second place there is the jealous resentment of
infidelities which interfere with a permanent relation.
This emotional reaction is present, together with the
social one, in the concrete instances quoted in the fore-
going paragraph.

Finally there is the pure sexual jealousy from tfiwarted
impulse or desire which will impel a man or a boy to
violent and vindictive actions.

324

BEAUTY IN LOVE-MAKING

BEAUTY, COLOUR, AND SCENT IN LOVE-MAKING

We know by now how a Trobriand girl and boy are
first attracted to each other, how they come together, how
their intrigue develops, leading to separation or marriage j
but we know little as yet o£ the way in which two lovers
spend their time together and enjoy each other's presence.

In this as in all other aspects of Melanesian tribal life,
custom and convention dictate to a large extent even the
details of behaviour. Individual deviations always exist,
but they fall within a relatively narrow range j much nar-
rower unquestionably than at our own culture level. A
lover does not expect from his or her partner the improvi-
sation of a love rhapsody, but rather a properly executed
repetition of traditional routine. The places in which it
is desirable to make love, the manner of making it, the
very types of caress, are defined by tradition. Independ-
ent informants would describe exactly the same procedure
almost in the same words.

The word kwakwadu is a technical term which signifies
something like "amorous transactions" or "being together
for purposes of love." It would be easier perhaps to
express it in German, as erotisches Belsamtnenselnj or by
the American colloquialism "petting party" or "petting
session." English speech habits are, unfortunately, re-
fractory to stereotyped terminology, except in matters of
morality. The kwakwadu has a wide meaning. It sig-

PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

nifies a collective excursion, or party of several couples
setting out on a love picnic 3 the being together of two peo-
ple who are in love with each other — a sort of erotic tete-
a-tete; the caresses and approaches before the final union.
It is never used euphemistically to designate the sexual
act. At a collective picnic some of the games described
in the previous chapter are first played in common, and
afterwards the lovers seek solitude two by two. We shall
attempt to reconstruct the behaviour of a pair who have
left such a party, or else started off alone in order to enjoy
each other's company in some favourite spot.

The scrub surrounding the village, which is periodically
cut for gardens, grows in a dense underbrush and does not
everywhere offer a desirable resting place. Here and
there, however, a large tree, such as the butiay is left be-
hind for the sake of its perfumed flowers, or there may
be a group of pandanus trees. Pleasant shady places, too,
can be found under an old tree in one of the groves which
often mark the site of a deserted village, whose fruit
trees, coco-nut palms, and big banyans make an oasis
within the stunted tropical undergrowth of recent culti-
vation. On the coral ridge {rayhwag) many spots invite
a picnic party. Cavities and hollows in the coral, rocks of
queer or attractive shape, giant trees, thickets of fern,
flowering hibiscus make the rayhwag a mysterious and
attractive region. Especially delightful is the part which
overlooks the open sea towards the east, towards the
islands of Kitava, Iwa, and Gawa. The roar of the
breakers on the fringing reef, the dazzling sand and foam
and the blue sea, provide the favourite surroundings for

326

BEAUTY IN LOVE-MAKING

native love-making, and also constitute the scene in which
the mythical drama of incestuous love has been laid by
native imagination (see ch. xiv).

In such places the lovers enjoy the scent and colour o£
the flowers, they watch the birds and insects, and go down
to the beach to bathe. In the heat of the day, or during
the hot seasons, they search for shady spots on the coral
ridge, for water-holes and for bathing places. As the
cool of the evening approaches they warm themselves on
the hot sand, or kindle a fire, or find shelter in some nook
among the coral rocks. They amuse themselves by col-
lecting shells and picking flowers or scented herbs, to
adorn themselves. Also they smoke tobacco, chew betel-
nut, and, when they are thirsty, look for a coco-nut palm,
the green nut of which yields a cooling drink. They in-
spect each other's hair for lice and eat them — a practice
disgusting to us and ill associated with love-making, but
to the natives a natural and pleasant occupation between
two who are fond of each other, and a favourite pastime
with children (pi. 70). On the other hand, they would
never eat heavy food on such occasions and especially
would never carry it with them from the village. To
them the idea of European boys and girls going out for a
picnic with a knapsack full of eatables is as disgusting and
indecent as their kwakwadu would be to a Puritan in our
society (see also ch. iii, sec. 4).

All such pleasures — the enjoyment of landscape, of
colour and scent in the open air, of wide views and of
intimate corners of nature — are essential features in their
love-making. For hours, sometimes for days, lovers will

327

PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

go out together gathering fruits and berries for food and
enjoying each other's company in beautiful surroundings.
I made a point of confirming these particulars from a
number of concrete instances 3 for, in connection with the
question of romantic love already discussed, I was inter-
ested to know whether love-making had direct satisfaction
only for its object, or whether it embraced a wider sen-
sory and aesthetic enjoyment. Many of the pleasures
which enter into general games, amusements, and festivi-
ties, also form part of personal kwakwadu.

Of course, love is not made only in the open air; there
are also special occasions for bringing lovers together in
the village. In chapter iii, the special institution of the
bukwmatula and the more provisional arrangements of
younger people have been mentioned. In the village,
however, privacy is almost impossible except at night, and
the activities of lovers are much more curtailed. They
lie next to each other on a bunk and talk, and when they
are tired of this, proceed to make love.

THE CONVERSATION OF TWO LOVERS

It is not easy to reconstruct personal conversations
which in their nature take place under very intimate con-
ditions and without witnesses. A question couched in
such general terms as "What do a boy and a girl talk to
each other about at a kwakwadu?^^ is likely to be answered
by a grin, or, if the man is familiar with the ethnographer,
by the standard reply to all difficult questions: Tonagowa

328

CONVERSATION OF TWO LOVERS

yokuy^^you fool" 5 in other words, "Don't ask silly ques-
tions."

From the spontaneous confidences of some of my
friends, however, I obtained some glimpses into what
passes during these tete-a-tetes, A boy would often re-
peat, for the sake of impressing me or just to give me
some definite news, what a girl told him and what he re-
plied, or vice versa. There is no doubt that the Trobriand
lover boasts freely to his sweetheart and expects a sym-
pathetic listener and an enthusiastic response. I have al-
ready mentioned how Monakewo used to tell me of the
great impression he had made on Dabugera and how
greatly she admired his exploits and virtues. Mekala'i
was equally certain that Bodulela was deeply impressed
by any achievements which he related to her. Gomaya,
a young chief of Sinaketa and an incurable braggart,
would tell me how his betrothed, to whom he was
plighted in infancy, would wonder at his stories of per-
sonal excellence, of magical knowledge and of overseas
adventure. In fact, whenever a Trobriander went into
details about his love affairs, the impression made on his
mistress would never be absent from his account, and
would be related to me, in native fashion, as fragments
of an actual conversation.

Gossip about other people's business, and especially
about their love affairs, is also a common subject of con-
versation between two lovers 5 and on many occasions
much of it ultimately came my way, in that a boy would
repeat what he had heard from his sweetheart. For the
rest, they talk of what they are doing at that moment, the

329

PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

beauties of nature, and of the things they like or do not
like. Sometimes, too, a boy will vaunt his exploits in those
pursuits in which women do not usually participate, such
as kula expeditions, fishing, bird-snaring, or hunting.

Thus a love affair may be set in a rich context of
general interest, as regards both mutual activity and con-
versation j but this varies with the intelligence and the
personality of the partners. Ambitious, imaginative people
would not be content with mere sensuous pleasure j but
the obtuse and limited would proceed no doubt, directly
to the cruder stages — ^the usual caresses and the sexual act.

EROTIC APPROACHES

The place occupied by the kiss in South Sea communi-
ties is of general and perennial interest. It is a widely
prevalent opinion that kissing is not practised outside the
Indo-European horizon. Students of anthropology, as
well as frequenters of comic opera, know that even in
such high civilizations as those of China and Japan the
kiss as a gesture in the art of love is unknown. A Euro-
pean shudders at the idea of such cultural deficiency.
For his comfort, it may be said at once that things are not
so black as they look.

To get at the facts and to see these in their right per-
spective, the question must first be put more precisely.
If we ask whether lip-activities play any part in love-
making, the answer is that they certainly do. As we shall
see, both in the preliminary caresses and in the later

330

EROTIC APPROACHES

stages, the mouth is busy. On the other hand, if we
define kissing more precisely as a prolonged pressing of
mouth against mouth with slight intermittent movements
^and I think that all competent authorities would agree
with such a definition and with the proposition that this
is the main erotic preliminary in Europe and the United
States — then the kiss is not used in Trobriand love-mak-
ing. Certainly it never forms a self-contained independ-
ent source of pleasure, nor is it a definite preliminary stage
of love-making, as is the case with us. This caress was
never spontaneously mentioned by the natives, and, to
direct inquiries, I always received a negative answer. The
natives know, however, that white people "will sit, will
press mouth against mouth — they are pleased with it."
But they regard it as a rather insipid and silly form of
amusement.

Kissing in the narrow sense is also absent as a cultural
symbol, whether as a greeting, an expression of affection,
or a magical or ritual act. The rubbing of noses (vayauli)
as an act of greeting is rare, and never done except be-
tween very near relatives j it is said that parents and chil-
dren or husband and wife would thus celebrate their re-
union after long separation. A mother who is constantly
petting her small child, will frequently touch it with her
cheek or her lips j she will breathe upon it, or, putting her
open mouth against its skin, caress it gently. But the
exact technique of kissing is not used between mother and
child, and in no form is it so conspicuous with them as
with us.

The absence of kissing in the narrower sense brings us

331

PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

to a deeper difference in love-making. The natives, I
am convinced, never indulge in erotic caresses as a self-
sufficient activity j that is, as a stage in love-making which
covers a long period of time before full bodily union is
accomplished. This is a local and not a racial character,
for I am equally convinced (see above) that among other
Melanesians, in Dobu and probably among the Motu, in
the Sinaugolo and Mailu tribes, engaged couples do meet,
lie together, and caress each other without cohabitation.

The comparison, however, cannot be satisfactory, for
my knowledge of the latter tribes is much less complete
than in the case of the Trobriands, and so I can only sug-
gest a subject for further research. It is extremely im-
portant to know whether the nature of preliminary love
is correlated with the level of culture, or with the social
regulation of it — above all, with the moral restrictions
condemning prenuptial intercourse.

We have spoken rather fully about kissing, to satisfy
a general curiosity on this point. Let us now observe the
behaviour of two lovers alone on their bunk in the huku-
matulay or in a secluded spot in the rayhwag or jungle.
A mat is usually spread on the boards or on the earth,
and, when they are sure of not being observed, skirt and
pubic leaf are removed. They may at first sit or lie side
by side, caressing each other, their hands roaming over the
surface of the skin. Sometimes they will lie close to-
gether, their arms and legs enlaced. In such a position
they may talk for a long time, confessing their love with
endearing phrases, or teasing each other (katudabumd) .
So near to each other, they will rub noses. But though

EROTIC APPROACHES

there is a good deal of nose-rubbing, cheek is also rubbed
against cheek, and mouth against mouth. Gradually the
caress becomes more passionate, and then the mouth is
predominantly active 5 the tongue is sucked, and tongue is
rubbed against tongue j they suck each other's lower lips,
and the lips will be bitten till blood comes j the saliva is
allowed to flow from mouth to mouth. The teeth are
used freely, to bite the cheek, to snap at the nose and
chin. Or the lovers plunge their hands into the thick
mop of each other's hair and tease it or even tear it. In
the formulas of love magic, which here as elsewhere
abound in over-graphic exaggeration, the expressions,
"drink my blood" and "pull out my hair" are frequently
used (see next chapter). This sentence, volunteered by
a girl's sweetheart, describes his erotic passion:

Binunu vivila dubilibaloday bigadi;

She sucks woman lower lip (ours), she bites 3
tagiyu bimwam.
we spit, she drinks.

Erotic scratches are an even more direct way of hurt-
ing and of drawing blood. We have already spoken of
these as the conventional invitation of a girl to a boy. We
also described their place in tribal festivities (ch. ix, sec.
5). But they are also a part of intimate love-making,
and a mutual expression of passion:

Tayobobuy tavayauUy takenu deli;

We embrace, we rub noses, we lie together 5

333

PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

bikimali vivila otuhwaloday ovilavada

she scratches woman on back (ours), on shoulders (ours) 5

sene bwoynciy tanukwaliy bitagwalayda

very much good, we know, she loves us

senela,

very much indeed.

On the whole, I think that in the rough usage of pas-
sion the woman is the more active. I have seen far larger
scratches and marks on men than on women j and only
women may actually lacerate their lovers as in the case
mentioned in chapter ix, section 5. The scratching is car-
ried even into the passionate phases of intercourse. It is
a great jest in the Trobriands to look at the back of a
man or a girl for the hall-marks of success in amorous
life. Nor have I ever seen a comely girl or boy without
some traces of kimali in the proper places. Subject to
general rules of good taste and specific taboo (see ch. xiii),
the kimali marks are a favourite subject for jokes 5 but
there is also much secret pride in their possession.

Another element in love-making, for which the average
European would show even less understanding than for
the kimaliy is the mitakukuy the biting off of eyelashes.
As far as I could judge from descriptions and demonstra-
tions, a lover will tenderly or passionately bend over his
mistress's eyes and bite oflF the tip of her eyelashes. This,
I was told, is done in orgasm as well as in the less pas-
sionate preliminary stages. I was never quite able to
grasp either the mechanism or the sensuous value of this
caress. I have no doubt, however, as to its reality, for I

334

THE ACT OF SEX

have not seen one boy or girl in the Trobriands with the
long eyelashes to which they are entitled by nature. In
any case, it shows that the eye to them is an object of
active bodily interest. Still less enthusiasm will probably
be felt by the romantic European towards the already
mentioned custom of catching each other's lice and eating
them. To the natives, however, it is a pastime, which,
while pleasant in itself, also establishes an exquisite sense
of intimacy.

THE ACT OF SEX

The following is a condensed description of the whole
process of love-making, with several characteristic inci-
dents, given me by my friend Monakewo:

Takwakwadu: dakova^ kadiyaguma^
We make love: our fire, our lime gourd,
kaditafwaki: kada galay mwasila. Bkala,

our tobacco 3 food (ours) no, shame. We go,
tala kaytala ka^t kayviava; tasisu,

we go (for) one (wood) tree tree bigj we sit,
takakakutu; taluki vivila:

we louse and eatj we tell to woman:

^Hakayta?^ BvuookwOy

"we copulate" (let us copulate). It is finished,

bit old ovalu; ovalu tola obukumatulay

we go to village 3 in village we go to bachelors'

house.

335

PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

takenu tabigatona, Kidama kadumwaletay

we lie, we chatter. Supposing we are alone,

taltku yaviday biliku dabela

we undo pubic leaf ours she undoes skirt (hers)

iamasisi,

we sleep.

This may be freely rendered: "When we go on a love-
making expedition we light our firej we take our lime
gourd (and chew betel-nut), we take our tobacco (and
smoke it). Food we do not take, we would be ashamed
to do so. We walk, we arrive at a large tree, we sit down,
we search each other's heads and consume the lice, we tell
the woman that we want to copulate. After it is over we
return to the village. In the village we go to the bach-
elors' house, lie down, and chatter. When we are alone
he takes off the pubic leaf, she takes off her fibre skirt:
we go to sleep."

With regard to the act itself, perhaps the most note-
worthy feature is the position.

The woman lies on her back, the legs spread and
raised, and the knees flexed. The man kneels against her
buttocks, her legs resting on his hips. The more usual
position, however, is for the man to squat in front of the
woman and, with his hands resting on the ground, to move
towards her or, taking hold of her legs, to pull her to-
wards him. When the sexual organs are close to each
other the insertion takes place. Again the woman may
stretch her legs and place them directly on the man's hips,
with his arms outside them, but the far more usual posi-

,336

THE ACT OF SEX

tion is with her legs embracing the man's arms, and rest-
ing on the elbows.

An interesting text gives the description of both
methods:

Kidama vivila skana ikanufwagega;

Supposing woman a little bit she lies open (-legged) ;
kaykela bima ogifomada.

legs hers it comes on our hips.

Kidama ikanufwagega senelay

Supposing she lies open (-legged) very much indeed,
ikanuheyayay kaykela bima o

she lies right open, leg hers it comes on

fmtutugu kaylavast.
end mine elbow.

Which may be rendered:

"When the woman opens her legs only a little, her legs
come (i.e. rest) on my hipsj when she lies with legs
spread out very much, lies right open, her legs rest on
my elbows."

Congress is sometimes effected in a reclining position.
Lying side by side, with the lower limbs pressed against
each other, the woman places her upper leg on top of the
man, and the insertion is made. This mode, which is less
popular, is used at night in the bukumatula (bachelors'
house). It is less noisy, as the natives say, and requires
less space J and is done in order not to wake up the other
inmates of the house (see ch. iii, sec. 4).

No other positions are used. Above all, the natives

337

PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

despise the European position and consider it unpractical
and improper. The natives, of course, know it, because
white men frequently cohabit with native women, some,
even being married to them. But, as they say: "The man
overlies heavily the woman 5 he presses her heavily down-
wards, she cannot respond {ibilamafu) ^'^

Altogether the natives are certain that white men do
not know how to carry out intercourse eflFectively. As a
matter of fact, it is one of the special accomplishments of
native cook-boys and servants who have been for some
time in the emplo3^ of white traders, planters, or officials,
to imitate the copulatory methods of their masters. In
the Trobriands, Gomaya was perhaps the best actor in
this respect. He still remembered a famous Greek buc-
caneer (Nicholas Minister was the name he went by
among other beachcombers), who had lived in the islands
even before the establishment of the government station.
Gomaya's performance consisted in the imitation of a very
clumsy reclining position, and in the execution of a few
sketchy and flabby movements. In this the brevity and
lack of vigour of the European performance were carica-
tured. Indeed, to the native idea, the white man achieves
orgasm far too quickly; and there seems to be no doubt
that the Melanesian takes a much longer time and em-
ploys a much greater amount of mechanical energy to
reach the same result. This, together with the handicap
of the unfamiliar position, probably accounts for the com-
plaints of white men that native girls are not responsive.
Many a white informant has spoken to me about perhaps
the only word in the native language which he ever

THE ACT OF SEX

learned, kubilahda ("move on horizontally")? repeated
to him with some intensity during the sexual act. This
verb defines the horizontal motion during sexual inter-
course, which should be mutual. The noun hllahalay
originally means a horizontally lying logj and hala as a
root or prefix, conveys a general sense of the horizontal.
But the Ya:hybilabalay does not convey the immobility of
a log 5 on the contrary, it gives the idea of horizontal
motion. The natives regard the squatting position as
more advantageous, both because the man is freer to move
than when kneeling, and because the woman is less ham-
pered in her responsive movements — bilafnafu — a com-
pound of bilay from balay horizontal, and mafUy repay or
respond. Also in the squatting position the man can per-
form the treading motion {mtumuta)^ which is a useful
dynamic element in successful copulation. Another word,
korikikilay implies at the same time rubbing and pushing,
a copulatory motion.

As the act proceeds and the movements become more
energetic, the man, I was told, waits until the woman is
ready for orgasm. Then he presses his face to the
woman's, embraces her body and raises it towards him,
she putting her arms round him at the same time and, as
a rule, digging her nails into his skin. The expression
for orgasm is ififisi momona == the seminal fluid dis-
charges. The word momona signifies both the male and
the female discharge j as we know, the natives do not
make any sharp distinction between male semen and the
glandular secretions of a woman, at least, not as regards
their respective functions. The same expression ipsi

339

PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

momona is also applied to (male or female) nocturnal
pollution. The word for onanistic ejaculation is isulu-
momoniy "it boils over sexual fluid." Male masturbation
is called ikivayli kwila — "he manipulates penis" j female
masturbation is described in concrete phrases and has no
specific name.

An interesting personal account was given to me by
Monakewo and illustrates some of the points just men-
tioned. It was hardly discreet of him to speak of his mis-
tress by namej but the ethnographer's love for the con-
crete instance may excuse my not emending it.

Bamasisi deli Dabugera; hayohohuy

I sleep together Dabugera 5 I embrace,

bavakayla havayauU, Tanunu dubilihaloday

I hug all length, I rub noses. We suck lower lips ours,
fela bi^ulugwalayda; mayela tanunu;

because we feel excited 5 tongue his we suckj

tagadl kabulula; tagadl kola gabula; tagadl
we bite nose his 5 we bite his chin 5 we bite
kimwala; takabi fosigalay

jaw (cheek) his 5 we take hold (caress) armpit his,
visiyala, Bilivala minana: "O didakwani,

groin his. She says this woman: "O it itches,
lubaygUy senela; kworikikila

lover mine, very much indeed j rub and push

tuvaylay bilukwali wowogu —

again, it feels pleasant body mine —

340

THE ACT OF SEX

kwofmavlyakay nanakwa hififisi

do it vigorously, quick (so that) it squirts

momona: — kwalimtufnutu tuvayla hilukwali
sexual fluid; — tread again it feels pleasant

wowogu,^^
body mine."

Free Translation

"When I sleep with Dabugera I embrace her, I hug
her with my whole body, I rub noses with her. We suck
each other's lower lip, so that we are stirred to passion.
We suck each other's tongues, we bite each other's noses,
we bite each other's chins, we bite cheeks and caress the
armpit and the groin. Then she will say: ^O my lover,
it itches very much . . . push on again, my whole body
melts with pleasure ... do it vigorously, be quick, so
that the fluids may discharge . . . tread on again, my
body feels so pleasant.' "

The same informant gave me the following samples
of a conversation which would occur after the act, when
the two rested in each other's arms:

^^Kayne tomhwayUm yayguP^

"Whether sweetheart thine I?"
^^Mtage! nabwayligu yoku — sene

"Yes! sweetheart mine thou — very much

magigu; tutay tuta, bitakayta; sene

desire mine; time, time, we copulate ; very much

migimbwayligu mlgm tabudaP^

face yours beloved by me face thine cross-cousins!"

341

PSYCHOLOGY OF EROTIC LIFE

^^Gala maglgu bukuyousi nata vivila-

"No desire mine you get hold one woman

nava^u; yoku wala^ yaygu,^^

new woman 3 thou indeed, I."

"Am I thy sweetheart?" "Yes, thou art my sweet-
heart j I love thee very much 3 always, always we shall
cohabit. I love thy face very much j it is that of a cross-
cousin (the right woman for me)." "I do not desire
that thou shouldst take a new woman j just thou and I."

I was informed that sexual relations between married
people would be on the same lines, but, from the follow-
ing text, it is clear that passion ebbs with time.

Vigilava^u imasisisi kzvaytanidesi

Married newly they sleep single one

kabasi; blmugo vayvaH bikwaybogwOy

bed theirs j it matures matrimony it is old,
kwayta kabalay kwayta kabada. Bisala^u

one bed her, one bed ours. It is energetic

uwasiy magisi bikaytasi, bikenusi

body theirs, desire theirs they copulate, they lie
deli bikamitakukusi bivayaulasiy

together they bite eyelashes they rub noses.

bigedasi,
they bite.

"Newly married people sleep together in one bed.
When matrimony has matured, when it has become old,
she sleeps in one bed, and we (i.e. the husband) sleep

342

THE ACT OF SEX

in another. When they feel sexually vigorous they want
to cohabit 5 then they lie together, they bite their eye-
lashes, they rub their noses, they bite each other."

Here my informant, Tokulubakiki, a married man,
tries to convey the idea that even long-married persons
can behave at times as lovers.

In conclusion,^ I should like to draw the attention of
the reader to the data supplied by Dr. W. E. Roth and
other informants concerning the sexual life of the ab-
origines of Australia.^ The subject is of considerable
importance as the mechanism is very characteristic of the
whole nature of erotic approach. The manner in which
the Queensland aborigines copulate closely resembles that
described in this chapter. In both regions the act can
be so carried out that there is the minimum of bodily
contact. I think that this to a great extent accounts for
the undiscriminating way in which young and handsome
boys will sometimes fornicate with old and repulsive
women. On the other hand, where love exists, the man
can bend over the woman or the woman raise herself to
meet him and contact can be as full and intimate as is
desired.

^ Compare also what has been said about native ideas concerning the
anatomy and physiology of procreation and the psycho-physiological
mechanism of falling in love, chapter vii.

2 Dr. W. E. Roth, Ethnological Studies Among the North-West Central
Queensland Aborigines, 1897, and H. Basedow, in J.R.AJ., 1927, on
"Subincision and Kindred Rites of the Australian Aboriginal," pp. 151-6.

343

CHAPTER XI

THE MAGIC OF LOVE AND BEAUTY

Perhaps nothing is so akin to the mysterious and stir-
ring condition which we call falling in love, as that mystic
expectancy of miraculous intervention and of benevolent
and unexpected happenings which comes to all men at
certain psychological moments and forms the founda-
tion of the human belief in magic. There is a desire in
every one of us to escape from routine and certainty,
and it can be said, without exaggeration, that to most men
nothing is more cheerless and oppressive than the rigidity
and determination with which the world runsj and
nothing more repugnant than the cold truths of science,
which express and emphasize the determination of reality.
Even the most sceptical at times rebel against the inevi-
table causal chain, which excludes the supernatural and,
with it, all the gifts of chance and good fortune. Love,
gambling and magic have a great deal in common.

In a primitive community, not yet in bond to science,
magic lies at the root of innumerable beliefs and prac-
tices. Megway which may be almost exactly rendered
by our word "magic," is, to the Trobriander, a force re-
siding in man, transmitted to him from generation to
generation through the medium of tradition. This force
can only become active by the performance of a ritual
^appropriate to the occasion, by the recital of proper incan-

344

IMPORTANCE OF BEAUTY

tationSj and by the observance of specific taboos. In all
matters relating to love, it is of fundamental importance.
Magic can endow with charm and engender lovej magic
can alienate affection in consort or lover j and magic can
produce or enhance personal beauty.

THE IMPORTANCE OF BEAUTY

The magic of which the purpose is so to increase per-
sonal attractiveness that the performer may become
erotically irresistible to some one member of the opposite
sex, is but one among several kinds of beauty magic.
Personal appearance and charm are not valued on amo-
rous grounds only. A woman in her first pregnancy,
as we know, is subject to an elaborate ritual, with spells
to enhance her bodily beauty, which is in no way intended
to make her attractive to men. She is sexually taboo to
her own husband j and the idea of adultery under such
circumstances is, without exaggeration, morally repul-
sive to the natives. Again, a beauty magic has been
described elsewhere which is performed at a certain stage
in an overseas expedition.^ This has no erotic reference —
indeed love-making, on such occasions, is often taboo —
but its purpose is to make the personal charm of the
visitors so irresistible that they will be offered many gifts
of valuable ornaments. The heroes of ancestral days,
who make themselves beautiful for reasons which have

1 See Argonauts of the Western Pacific, ch. xiii, sec. i, and especially
PP- 335-6. Compare also footnote on p. 219, vol. i, of this work.

345

MAGIC OF LOVE AND BEAUTY

nothing to do with sex, figure in the mythology of the
kula (ArgonautSy ch. xii). It is important that the prac-
tice of beauty magic to a directly sexual end should be
placed in its proper setting in this general and intense
interest in personal charm.

CEREMONIAL OCCASIONS OF BEAUTY MAGIC

In our description of the opportunities given by festive
occasions for mutual admiration and contact, the im-
portance of beauty and skill in dancing, and of "deport-
ment" was made clear. Beauty magic is a part of the
personal preparation for all big festivals 5 special charms
are recited over certain parts of the body during the care
and cleansing of them, and during ornamentation. This
is always done on the last and culminating day of the
period of festival dancing (usigola) or of competitive
games {kayasa)^ during the third feast in which they
terminate (ch. ix, sees. 3 and 4). The tension, interest
and personal animosities characteristic of these competitive
displays must be realized before we can understand the
nature and importance of the beauty ceremonial j and we
shall, therefore, give a short account of the proceedings
as ritual observances, but without returning to the games
and amusements round which they centre (see above,
ch. ix, sec. 2).

The festive period, which lasts twenty-eight days,
always begins, as we know, at the full moon after the
return of the ancestral spirits. It is opened by a cere-

346

CEREMONIAL BEAUTY MAGIC

monial distribution of food (sagali) (pis. 71 and 72). A
sagali is a very important institution in the Trobriands^
it accompanies most ceremonial occasions, such as mortu-
ary rites, commemoration feasts, competitive enterprises
and the annual season of amusement. The mortuary
sagali (distributions), which are the most important, are
based upon the division into clans and sub-clans (see ch. vi,
sec. 4, and ch. xiii, sec. 5), since members of only one
clan always act as distributors, men of the remaining
clans receiving the food. At other times the apportion-
ment of the food follows some other sociological prin-
ciple. In all cases, however, it is the headman of the
local community who officiates as "master of the distri-
bution" {toUsagali). He and his kinsmen arrange the
allotment of each heap of yams, moving among them,
discussing and memorizing (pi. 71). After that the same
committee slowly walk from one heap to another and
the master or his spokesman calls out the name or descrip-
tion of the recipient. When this has been done, the men
move away from the place and, after a time, the women
belonging to each recipient collect the yams in baskets and
carry them to their storehouses (pi. 72). In a small
sagaliy such as is held within the community at the be-
ginning of a dancing or playing season, the duty of pro-
viding the food invariably falls on the master and his
kinsmen, while the renown {butura) of the distribution
goes to their credit, and those who receive food are re-
sponsible to them for the success of the entertainments
which follow.

The distribution in fact imposes an obligation on all

347

MAGIC OF LOVE AND BEAUTY

participants to go on steadily with the dance, game, or
whatever special display has been chosen, for the whole
period. In an usigola (dancing period) each heap of
food would be allotted according to its size, and be given
to a special class of performer. One of the largest would
go to the leaders of the round dance {tokoUmatala) . The
three men who perform the complicated figure dance, the
solemn kasawaga^ receive an equally big portion. The
singers {tokwayfo^u\ a body of no mean importance, also
have their special place in the distribution. Smaller heaps
of different sizes are given to the drummers, the mutes in
the figure dance, the boys who catch the iguana for the
drumskin, and to all the rest of the villagers, according
to the part they play in the proceedings. In a sagali (dis-
tribution), therefore, the respective importance of each
group is emphasized and this causes a certain amount of
tension and jealousy, and some little boasting.

On the first day, magic is performed over a conch-
shell and over food. The conch-shell is blown on that
day and also during the dance j the food is buried wher-
ever a road enters the village. Both rites are meant
magically to enhance the splendour of the performance.
The charmed conch-shell announces the coming display
with the thrilling ostentation of magical power. The
burial of the food expresses the desire for plenty within
the village, is a symbol of it, and is believed to effect it.
I was unable to obtain the formula of this magic, so my
information is but approximate.

After these ceremonies, the dancing period begins. At
first, there is much to do in the way of learning, training,

348

CEREMONIAL BEAUTY MAGIC

and preliminary contests. In the middle of the month
a second sagaU (distribution of food) is held, called
katumwalela kasakasa (the priming of the rank and file).
There is a special dance on such a day, but no other rites
are performed.

Finally, at the next full moon, there comes the kovayse
(the winding up), which lasts for three days, and is the
main festivity of the period. Two days before the full
moon, there is a great communal eating of sago or taro
pudding (see pis. 5 and 86). This day is called itavakayse
kaydebu ("preparing of the dancing shield"), or itava-
kayse bisila ("preparing of the pandanus streamer"), in
reference to the shield and streamer which are both used
in dancing. On the next day, which is called kokolukwaHy
the same proceedings are repeated. On both days cere-
monial dancing takes place.

The third day is called luvayam^ "the day of consum-
mation," or lafulay "the rounding-off day," and is a great
occasion. People from many villages are invited, and
begin to arrive in the morning, soon filling the village
street and surrounding spaces. Each community sits in
a group, camping on mats, surrounded with baskets and
children. Those on more intimate terms with their hosts
assist them in the preparations. The villagers, with
serious set faces, move quickly to and fro among the
guests, in gala dress, some already adorned for the
dance — ^the men perhaps in female grass petticoats with
the whole body decked out in valuable ornaments and
flowers.

In the morning, the performance begins with an in-

349

MAGIC OF LOVE AND BEAUTY

augural round dance, the mwelt (as on pis. 58, G^t 82).
The mweli is followed at about noon by the ceremonial
figure dance {kasawaga) (pi. 73). All is done in full
dress and with great display, to the attentive observation
of the onlookers. But this is only a preparation for what
will follow.

After midday, the real ceremonial begins. The per-
formers have now ritually to wash, dress, and ornament
themselves. The visitors and the rest of the villagers
are in the meantime engaged in a distribution of food and
in feasting. Early in the afternoon, platters of baked
yams, bananas, and coco-nut, and sometimes of fish as
well, are brought to the guests and distributed to each
community as mltalela valu ("eye of the village" — a
metaphor which I was unable to elucidate). This is
usually an occasion for much merriment and some horse-
play, the givers and receivers exchanging appropriate
jokes. Then each group sets to work on its portion, sit-
ting round the platter with backs turned to the people
from other village communities, as is required by good
manners.

To complete our account of food distributions: there
follows another sagali, in which the performers, now fully
dressed and adorned, give presents to their tahmia
(father's sisters, and their daughters). This is a repay-
ment for the beauty magic which the women have per-
formed upon them, to the description of which we now
proceed.

350

RITUAL OF WASHING

BEAUTY magic: THE RITUAL OF WASHING

The ceremonial washing and decoration of the dancers
is undertaken on this occasion by women of a special class,
namely those who stand to them in the relation of tabu.
We shall have to discuss the tahu and their place in the
social scheme more fully in the chapters which follow
(ch. xiii, sec. 63 see also ch. viii, sec. 2). In this place we
need only mention that they are the approved and suitable
partners for passing intrigues, for more stable liaisons or
for marriage (see also ch. iv, sec. 4). It is their duty
now to prepare the men for the dance, to deck them out
with ornaments, with flowers and with paint, and to per-
form the magic incidental to each stage of the proceed-
ings. In this, the ritual differs from the beauty magic in
the kulay where each man makes his own magic and
adorns himself. It is, on the other hand, similar in every
respect to the beauty magic performed in the first preg-
nancy ceremony (see above, ch. viii, sec. 2).

The ceremonial dressing must, as always, be preceded
by a ritual washing and cleansing, conducted to a running
accompaniment of appropriate spells. The dancers and
their attendants have now assembled outside the village
in the grove, usually at a place not far from the water-
hole (pi. 74). While the boys wait, their tabula recite a
spell over some coco-nut fibre, with which the skin is to
be rubbed as with a sponge 5 and over some soft leaves
(usually of the wageva shrub), with which the skin will

351

MAGIC OF LOVE AND BEAUTY

be dried as with a towel. This is, in free translation, a
kaykakaya (ablution) formula for the charming of the
coco-nut fibre: ^

Polishing, polishing off,

Cleansing, cleansing off.

There is one piece of fibre.

My own, a keen fibre, a buoyant fibre,

One which is as the morning star,

Which is as the full moon.

I cleanse his chest, I improve his head,

I improve his chest, I cleanse his head.

They climb up a pole (to admire).

They bind a flattery-bond round his knees.

This formula needs hardly any comment. It contains,
as with most magic, the affirmation of the desired effect.
It begins with a simple statement of the action of cleans-
ing, and then extols the value of the coco-nut, comparing
it to the morning star and to the full moon. The quality
thus charmed into the coco-nut fibre will, it must be re-
membered, be later on transferred by friction to the skin
of the bather. The idea of a light colour as an attribute
of beauty is clearly expressed. The formula closes with
an exaggerated statement of the effect to be produced by
the magic. It is a custom to remove a piece of decoration
from the body of a dancer or, in the case of people of
high rank, to tie a string round his leg or arm, in order
to express admiration. This is done with the words
Agu tilewaHy "my flattery-bond," and has to be redeemed
by the admired dancer with a suitable present, which is
also called tilewaH — flattery-gift.

1 For information as to the linguistic plan adopted in the translation of
this and other native texts, see ch. xviii, "The Power of Words in Magic,"
in my Argonauts of the Western Pacific.

RITUAL OF WASHING

The following formula is spoken over the leaves used
for drying the skin : —

I pull and pull, I pull hither and thither,

I pull my leaves of drying.

There is one kind of towel leaves, /

The leaves of my companions;

Sere, parched leaves they are,

There is another kind of leaves, my tovp^el leaves.

The leaves of me, of Ibo'umli,

They are keen buoyant flashing leaves.

Here again we find the usual affirmation, but the three
middle lines are very interesting, for they show what
might be called a typical case of magical relativity. The
magic of the speaker, who in such cases always mentions
his or her own name, is extolled at the expense of the
magic of his or her companions. This type of phrasing
is prevalent in magic applied in competitive activities.^
The pulling of the leaves mentioned in the first line refers
to the act of breaking them from the tree, and is a typical
magical expression.

After the coco-nut fibre and the leaves have been
charmed, each man takes his sponge and towel from his
tabula and wraps it up in leaves, so that no magic virtue
shall evaporate, even during the short passage from the
spot where they are assembled to the water-hole, whither
the men presently repair, leaving the women behind.
Arrived there, the men remove all dress and ornament,
and begin to wash, scraping off any paint which still re-
mains from the morning. The coco-nut fibre is first un-
wrapped from its covering, and with this they rub their

1 Compare, for instance, the formula referring to the speed of the canoe,
Argonauts of the Western Pacific, p. 130.

MAGIC OF LOVE AND BEAUTY

skin. They rub carefully and earnestly and with a scru-
pulous minuteness, so that no part of the skin shall remain
untouched. The face and the chest are perhaps most
thoroughly scrubbed. With the same meticulous atten-
tion to detail, the skin is dried with the soft, spongy
leaves. Then they return to their female magicians who
are awaiting them.

BEAUTY magic: THE RITUAL OF ADORNMENT

In the meantime, the women have been preparing
various cosmetic substances. Each boy, before the wash-
ing, has taken off his most precious ornaments, such as
shell-belt, armshells, and valuable necklaces, and left
them with his tabula; so now the toilet can begin. First
comes the anointing with charmed coco-nut oil, always the
next stage after washing (I failed to obtain the magical
formula of coco-nut oil). When this has been well
rubbed all over the skin, by the man himself and not by
the women, the latter proceed to stroke the skin with
a mother-of-pearl shell {kayeki or kaydohu) (pi. 75).
Slowly and gently each tabula presses the smooth shell
up and down over his cheeks, his arms and his chest, and
laterally across his forehead 5 reciting a formula, as she
does so, in a clear audible voice. The words must always
be spoken towards the boy's face which she is stroking.

Who makes the beauty magic? —

To heighten the beauty, to make it come out.

Who makes it on the slopes of Obukula? —

I, Tabalu, and my mate Kwaywaya.

We make the beauty magic.

354

RITUAL OF ADORNMENT

I smooth out, I improve, I whiten!
Thy head I smooth out, I improve, I whiten!
Thy cheeks I smooth out, I improve, I whiten!
Thy nose I smooth out, I improve, I whiten!
Thy throat I smooth out, I improve, I whiten!
Thy neck I smooth out, I improve, I whiten!
Thy shoulders I smooth out, I improve, I whiten!
Thy breast I smooth out, I improve, I whiten!
Bright skin, bright; glowing skin, glowing.

The opening sentences of the formula again present a
typical pattern of Trobriand magic. They express the
traditional filiation of the actual performer. By reciting
them, the magician charms, not in his own name, but as
a representative, so to speak, of the original source of the
magic. He — or in this case she — is even projected to the
spot from whence the magic came 5 in the present rites
on the slopes of Obukula, where the primeval grotto lies,
near the village of Laba'i.^ From this grotto, according
to tradition, the earliest clan-ancestors emerged. There,
also, the culture hero Tudava was raised and lived with
his mother. It is the centre of traditional magic, of
custom and of law. The formula identifies the speaker
with two ancestors of the highest sub-clan, which takes
its name from one of them, Tabalu. In the form given
in this charm, the names can be either male or female.
In practice, the masculine prefix Mo- or the feminine
prefix Bo- is usually added to indicate whether a man or
a woman is named. Thus, the old chief of Kasana'i, who
was still alive on my first visit to the Trobriands, was
called M 'tabalu, and one of his nephews, Kwaywaya.
The feminine forms would be Botabalu and Bokwaywaya

1 For details of these legendary places and persons, see Myth in Primi'
five Psychology.

Z5S

MAGIC OF LOVE AND BEAUTY

respectively. The rest o£ the formula is typical of all
the longer spells and follows, step by step, the ritual
applications to the object charmed. This is the longest
formula and the most circumstantial act of beauty magic.
After the body has been anointed and smoothed with
the pearl shell, the cosmetics are ceremonially applied.
The mouth is painted with crushed betel-nut, while the
following words are chanted:

Red paint, red paint thither.

Red paint, red paint hither.

One red paint of my companions,

It is sere, it is parched.

One red paint, my red paint

Of me, of Ibo'umli ;

It is keen, it is buoyant, it is flashing:

My red paint.

This charm is similar in form to that of the wageva
leaves.

When the mouth has been painted red, and perhaps a
few lines in the same colour on the face, ornamental
spirals are painted on the cheeks and forehead with
sayaku (pi. 76), an aromatic black cosmetic, while the
following words are recited:

O black paint, O buoyant black paint!

O black paint, O decorative black paint!

O black paint, O comely black paint!

Glowing eyes, glowing, bright eyes, bright.

For this is my sayaku.

The ornamenting, the alluring black paint Indeed.

Then the hair is teased out with a comb to the accom-
paniment of this spell:

Who makes the beauty magic —
To heighten the beauty, to make it come out?
Who makes it on the slopes of Kituma?
, I, Ibo'umli, make the beauty magic

MAGIC OF SAFETY

To heighten the beauty, to make it come out.

1 make it on the slopes of Kituma.

Keen is my comb, buoyant is my comb,

My comb is like the full moon,

My comb is like the morning star.

For this is my comb,

It will adorn me,

It will make me beloved indeed.

The name, Ibo'umli, occurring in this and one or two
of the previous formulas, is that of my informant. The
place, Kituma, seems to be somewhere in the eastern archi-
pelago, but my informant could not locate it exactly.

The toilet is now almost complete. The dancers are
adorned with red flowers, aromatic herbs {yana)^ and
garlands of the butiuy which always blooms at this season
(pi. 77). Appropriate incantations are said, but I shall
not here cite them, for, although I obtained them, I can-
not translate them satisfactorily. Finally, and with no
adjuvant magic, such valuable ornaments as belts, arm-
shells, necklaces, and last, but not least, the feather orna-
ments for the head, are put on the dancers. This last
part of the toilet is done by men (pi. 78).

THE MAGIC OF SAFETY AND RENOWN AT FESTIVITIES

The elaborate ritual preparation of the dancers gives
some indication of the tense emotional atmosphere which
is characteristic of these big festive assemblies. The whole
complex of dangerous passions, which, at the same time,
spring from and generate the spirit of emulation, is
wrought upon by such a culminating occasion for personal
display.

357

MAGIC OF LOVE AND BEAUTY

While charms are being said over the dancers in the
grove to give them added beauty, strength, and skill, two
other kinds of magic are being prepared in the village, one
of which is a measure of protection. There is a deep
belief and a strong apprehension among the natives that
black magic is being used against the dancers by the ene-
mies of the village* Excellence in dancing is, indeed,
one of those dangerous accomplishments which arouse
great envy, and against which many an evil magician
directs his powers. In fact, among the symptoms by
which the wizard murderer is identified on the corpse of
his victim, an important place is occupied by marks which
signify: "This man was killed for his excellence in
dancing." ^

There is a special evil magic called kaygiauri, which is
practised against the dancers, and indeed against all the
bystanders except the sorcerer himself and his friends.
I was not able to find out any details about this magic,
how it is performed, or how it is supposed to act. But
I have myself seen men preparing an antidote and making
the counter-magic over the dancers. When the ritual
toilet had been completed, small parcels were produced,
containing magically treated wild ginger-root hermetically
wrapped up in leaves. These were chewed by the magi-
cian, who then spat over the skin of the dancer. Next he
took some aromatic leaves {kwehila) j over these he mut-
tered a short formula, and then he put them into the arm-
lets of the dancers.

The operation of these evil passions is not, in fact,

^ Cf. Crime and Custom, part ii, ch. ii, p. 89.

358

MAGIC OF SAFETY

wholly confined to the realm of idea and belief. The
danger of a fight during the culminating day of a kayasa
is even now not quite excluded. I was never present when
feeling ran high enough to develop into a brawl, but,
even so, I was strongly aware of a violence and ruthless-
ness in the behaviour of the performers and of the crowd,
of a certain nervous mistrust and clinging together of each
group, which confirmed the direct statements of the na-
tives and my general information as to the conduct of
such affairs in former times. Then the natives would
come fully armed, with spears, wooden sword clubs,
throwing sticks, and shields 3 each community would
stand in a group with every man on his guard, suspicious
of all strangers and on the look-out for possible trouble.
When interest in the performance was at its height, people
would push forward, the closer physical contact would
cause suspicion of sorcery, and anything might be the
signal for a fight. The presence of women in the various
groups was another important source of danger, because
of sexual rivalry.

To the envy and jealousy and mutual mistrust must
be added an ardent desire for renown {hutura). This
finds full and independent expression in a further type of
magic, which, with that of beauty and the specific against
hostile sorcery, is launched into the exalted atmosphere
of the village. This is the magic of uributUy "spreading
of renown" {uriy from ^^woriy^ to strike, to flick, to spray j
butUy root of "renown"). While the dancers are being
made ready under the trees of the village grove 3 while
a distribution of food is in progress on the central place,

359

MAGIC OF LOVE AND BEAUTY

the magician of glory, the to^uributUy proceeds in his own
house to manufacture fame for his community. He is the
same man who, on the first day of the festivities, a month
ago, has performed the important magic of the conch-
shells and the buried food. In the morning he has also
prepared the scene of the dances by ritual sweeping of the
haku (central place) with a charmed broom. Now comes
his most important performance. On a large mat, folded
over so that it encloses them, he places a drum, a conch-
shell, and a few pieces of reed {dadam). Into the open
mouth of this improvised magic bag he then chants his
spells. The formula unfortunately I was not able to
obtain.

His task is completed as the dancers are ready, fully
dressed and waiting to start (pi. 79) the lafula or final
dance. He gives one of the drummers the magic drum^
and another man takes the charmed conch-shell.

The dancers, the singers, and the drummers now put
themselves into position, ready for the signal. This is
given by the magician of glory and one or two assistants.
They run from the village street into the central place
with the magic reed in their hands. Each of them must
have both his hands upon the reed, which is pointing
towards the ground. They strike the ground at intervals
with the reed, while they utter a high-pitched scream
(igovasi) . « Arrived at the opposite end of the place, they
turn about and throw the reed into the air. The man
who catches the reed scores a point in this contest for
renown, and will be spoken of all over the district when
the feast is gossiped about and its heroes mentioned.

360

MAGIC OF LOVE

Then the men of the reed utter another very loud cry
and this gives the signal for the drummers to beat, for
the conch-shells to blow, and for the dancers to begin their
final performance.

THE MAGIC OF LOVE

We now pass to the most important system of magic
connected with erotic life in the Trobriands, the magic
of love. While the magic of beauty is always associated
with ceremonial events, such as the kula (ceremonial ex-
change), first pregnancy celebrations, a kayasa (period of
competitive activity), or an usigolay the magic of love
is performed whenever occasion arises. While the magic
of beauty, again, is always done openly and in public, that,
of love is a private matter and carried out on the indi-
vidual's own initiative. This, of course, does not mean
that there is anything illicit or clandestine about the magic
of love. People who possess it boast about it, and talk
about having put it in operation. Nor, from the nature
of the rites, would it be possible to conceal it completely
from its object. The magic of love becomes illicit only
in so far as the love itself is illicit 5 as, for instance, when
it is directed towards a chief's wife, or towards some other
tabooed person.

It has been mentioned that this magic belongs to a
systefn. A system of magic in the Trobriands is a series
of spells, which accompany some chain of linked activities
and are performed in a fixed order following the develop-

361

MAGIC OF LOVE AND BEAUTY

ment of the chain. In economic pursuits such as garden-
ing, fishing, the construction of a canoe, or a kula expe-
dition, or, again, in the magic of beauty just described,
the rites accompany each successive stage of the enterprise,
which naturally proceeds in a definite order.

But there are other spheres of magic where the system
possesses a slightly different character. For instance,
sorcery is believed to be the real cause of disease. In-
deed, black magic must be effective and finally fatal,
frovided that it is properly carried out with due observ-
ance of all conditions, and frovided that it is not met by
a stronger counter-magic. The sorcerer opens the attack,
the victim defends himself by securing counter-magic, and
by making use of every factor which could counteract the
full efficiency of black magic. Even if the sorcerer is
successful, or partially so, the resultant illness does not
develop along fixed lines as does the growth of a garden.
Hence this system cannot follow a fixed sequence of
events. Instead, a system of black magic consists of a
succession of spells and rites which gradually increase in
strength. When the sorcerer is successful, the increasing
strength of his spells produces the more rapid decline of
his victim until death supervenes. If the sorcerer is being
thwarted, he launches increasingly strong formulas in
order to get at his victim through the barrier of precau-
tions, adverse conditions, and counter-magic with which
the latter has protected himself.

Let us examine black magic, not from the native, but
from the ethnographer's point of view. A sorcerer either
is paid to remove a victim or does so from personal mo-

362

MAGIC OF LOVE

tives. It may happen, by a mere coincidence, that the
victim falls more or less seriously ill within a few weeks
of the initial operations. As black magic is often adver-
tised and always suspected, the illness is put down to its
influence. If it be known that a powerful sorcerer, in the
pay of a chief, is at work, suggestion may have a serious
effect on the victim. It does not follow that he gives in
utterly and dies, but I suspect that this occasionally^ hap-
pens/ As a rule, however, if pressed hard, the victim
will mobilize all the forces of defence. He will put
counter-magic in operation 3 set armed watches at night
around him 3 move away to another place, change his diet,
and observe all the taboos and other conditions of recov-
ery. Thus we have the interplay of two forces in the
imagination of the patient, corresponding to the inter-
play of the two real forces in his organism: resistance
and disease. The progress of the system of magic, ac-
companied by the progress of the system of counter-magic,
proceed side by side with the struggle between the or-
ganism and the invading forces of bacteria or malignant
changes. Once the sorcerer has determined on black
magic, or has received payment for it, he has to go
through the whole repertory from the initial formula to

1 1 have no well-attested instance in my notes, but several cases of rapid
wasting disease have appeared to me to belong to this category. Exam-
ples of people dying from sheer conviction that a broken taboo has a
lethal influence, or that black magic, too powerful to be counteracted, has
been set in motion against them, are numerous in ethnographic literature.
The argument in the text does not rest on the assumption, however, that
what might be called psychological death from sorcery is inevitable. It
rests rather on the principle which we can regard as established by mod-
ern psycho-therapy that a conviction of good and bad influences working
upon the patient's health is a most powerful element in the treatment,
Cf. P. Janet, Les Medications Psycholoffigues, 1920.

363

MAGIC OF LOVE AND BEAUTY

the final pointing o£ the bone — even i£ he has to admit
failure in the end. An unwittingly broken taboo is per-
haps an important sorcerer's best excuse for unsuccess j but
bad luck in the final application of charmed substances
and powerful counter-magic also serve to account for the
impotence of his magic. After such failure, the sorcerer
bides his time and awaits a suitable opportunity — such,
for instance, as his victim actually falling ill. Then he
sets to work again. For though the natives believe that
real illness (silami) can be produced only by magic, they
are perfectly well aware that an indisposition (kaioulo)
which may be natural forms an excellent soil for the
operations of sorcery.

It was necessary to enlarge on the general character
of magical systems, and on the distinction between the
system which follows the naturally determined progress
of activity or enterprise, on the one hand, and the system
which follows a course determined by the chance play
of unknown factors on the other, in order to lay bare the
essential character of love hiagic. This type also deals
with a configuration of chances and elements which do
not follow a definite natural course. Here also the belief
is very strong that love magic, properly executed and not
counteracted, is infallible. The nanola (mind and emo-
tional centre) of man or woman cannot resist the com-
plete consecutive series of rites and spells j even if it were
no more than strongly affected by the initial steps, it must
succumb to the cumulative ritual — that is if the magic
be not magically counteracted. For here also there are
causes which account for failure 3 the performer may not

RITE AND SPELL IN LOVE MAGIC

have the words accurately or he may have broken a con-
ditional taboo 5 or a counter-magic may frustrate his almost
successful attempts. As in all supernatural control of
chance, magical infallibility is absolute only under abso-
lutely perfect conditions 5 that is to say, it is never at-
tained in practice, though it may be claimed in theory.

THE RITE AND THE SPELL IN LOVE MAGIC

In following the practice of love magic through its
successive stages, we must have in mind the setting of a
Trobriand love story, in ordinary village life and among
the customary forms of communication between the sexes.
Although girls are said to practise this magic, it is more
usual for the man to take the initiative. The story begins
in the ordinary way: a boy is fascinated by a girl. If
there be no response and he does not win her favours im-
mediately, he resorts to the most potent way of courting
her, that is by magic.

As in ordinary beauty magic, he must first wash or
bathe in the sea. Thus he makes himself handsome and
attractive 3 in the same rite he also charms a responsive
affection into the loved one's heart. Let us suppose our
hero to live near the sea. On his way to the shore, he
gathers in the bush some of the soft spongy leaves of the
wagevay silaslla^ or fonatile shrubs, and also some leaves
from a tree with a specially smooth and clean bark —
preferably from the reyava and gatumwalila. He puts
the whole bundle into some large leaf and chants the

2>^S

MAGIC OF LOVE AND BEAUTY

special washing formula over it. This corresponds to
analogous spells in the kula beauty magic and in the
beauty magic described in the previous sections.

One of the kaykakaya spells of love magic, which I
obtained, may be freely rendered thus:

The Kaykakaya Spell

Leaves of dirt and leaves of cleansing,

Smooth as the bark of the reyava tree

As the tail of the opossum.

My face shines in beauty;

I cleanse it with leaves;

My face, I cleanse it with leaves,

My eyebrows, I cleanse them with leaves.

And SO on.

The boy then has to name various parts of the head
and of the body, adding after each the word ayoUse^ which
has been translated here: "I cleanse with leaves." These
were the parts named by the informant who gave me the
charm: head, face, eyebrows, nose, cheek, chin, jaws,
throat, shoulders, larynx, breasts, flanks, armpits, but-
tocks, thighs, knees, calves, and feet. The formula then
proceeds:

Beautiful will my face remain.

Flashing will my face remain,

Buoyant will my face remain!

No more it is my face,

My face is as the full moon.

No more it is my face,

My face is as the round moon.

I pierce through,

As the creamy shoot of the areca leaf,

I come out,

As a bud of the white lily.

Then the charmed leaves are carefully wrapped up,
lest the magic virtue should evaporate {kayawa)^ and the

366 '

RITE AND SPELL IN LOVE MAGIC

boy washes himself in water. When he is thoroughly
cleansed, the wrapping is opened, and the skin rubbed
all over and dried with the charmed leaves. At this point
the rite takes on its specific character as part of a system
of love magic j for the leaves that have been thus used
are thrown into the sea, with the words: ^^Kirisana akay-
kakayay kula kworisaki matana . . ." (here the girl's per-
sonal name is mentioned). The word kirisanay also
known in the form kirisala or km-isaluy signifies the influ-
ence which a dream induced by magic may exercise over
the seat of the emotions — ^the heart, as we would say- —
the belly, as the natives put it.^ The word might be
rendered: "The spell or the influence of a magical act
in inducing a dream." The verbal form is korisaki with
the active suflix -ki. The translation of the sentence
would, therefore, run as follows: "Dream-spell of my
kaykakaya charm, go and effectively influence the eye of
So-and-so."

Thus the rite has a twofold effect: it makes a man
beautiful, as does all washing magic, and it carries sweet
dreams about him into the mind of the girl. As the
natives put it, referring to the ritual casting of the herbs
into the sea: "As the leaves will be tossed by the waves,
and as they move with the sea up and down, so the inside
of the girl will heave."

What follows depends, as in sorcery, upon the effect
of what has already been accomplished. If the loved one
surrenders easily, perhaps one more formula will be re-
cited, to attach her affections the more securely. But if

1 Cf. below, ch. xii, sec. i.

367

MAGIC OF LOVE AND BEAUTY

the washing magic fails completely, another attack is made
on the beleaguered heart by means of a stronger magic
called the kasina. This has to be administered through
the mouth. A piece of food or betel-nut — or, to-day,
some tobacco — is charmed and given to the girl. The
washing magic has already made her more interested in
her suitor and, though she is not yet prepared to yield,
she will probably ask for some such small gift. In any
case, she will not refuse such an offering, even though
she suspects that it is given with an ulterior motive.

The Kasina Spell

My flashing decoration, my white skin!

I shall take the faces of my companions and rivals;

I shall make them be cast off.

I shall take my face, the face of me (personal name),

And I shall get a flattery-bond for it

For my beautiful full-moon face.

The simile in the last line would not perhaps send a
thrill to the heart of a white girl, but the full moon, for
the Trobriander, is a symbol of colour and of roundness
in a more emotionally appealing sense than it is with us.
The "flattery-bond" {tilewa^i) has already been explained
above (sec. 3).

When the girl has eaten this little douceur, the magic
enters into her inside and moves her mind. There is a
fair chance already that her affections are favourably
inclined, but a still more potent magic remains. The first
attack, as we saw, was through the ethereal medium of
dreams 5 the second, by the very material way of eating 5
there remain the two senses of touch and smell. These
are considered the most susceptible in love magic.

368

RITE AND SPELL IN LOVE MAGIC

The next rite, therefore, centres round an aromatic
herb called kwoyawaga^ which grows only in the eastern
islands and has to be traded mainly from Kitava. This
herb is put into a receptacle with coco-nut oil, and the
following spell is chanted over it:

The Kwoyawaga Spell

Spread out, fold up,

I cut oif, I cut, I cut.

A bait for a bird, for a small fish-hawk,

Vviy wvegu-guyo, o!

My kayro'hiva love charm remains,

My kayro'iiva love charm weeps,

My kayro'izua love charm pulls,

My kayro'i'wa love charm spills over.

Press down, press upon thy bed ;

Smooth out, smooth your pillow-mat;

Enter my house and tread upon my floor.

Tease out and tear out my hair;

Drink my blood and take hold of my penis;

Apicem penis suge, for my guts are moved.

This formula is much more obscure than the previous
ones. The first sentence, "spread out, fold up," may
refer, as my informants told me, to the mat on which a
boy and girl recline in amorous embrace. The cutting, by
analogy with similar formulas, is of the plants to be used
in the magic. In the next phrase, the magic is likened
to a bait for a bird and the girl to a fish-hawk which
hovers over the trap. One sentence I was unable to
translate even approximately, and it is therefore given in
native. What follows is less cryptic. Kayro^iwa is the
name of one of the systems of love magic, with which
we shall become more intimately acquainted in connection
with the native myth of incest (ch. xiv). The last part
is typical of the more passionate forms of love magic.

3^9

MAGIC OF LOVE AND BEAUTY

I have obtained several formulas with similar endings.

I may add that, for every formula which I was able
to write down, to check after a few weeks' interval, to get
a commentary upon, and to translate into anything like
sense, I had to reject several as spurious, fragmentary
or not understood by the natives. I was always able to
distinguish the genuine archaic formulas from the cor-
rupt, by the method of checking and re-checking them
with my original informant, after having allowed an
interval of time to elapse after each repetition.

To return to the magic of the kwoyawaga herbs, this
charmed and prepared aromatic substance can only be
used at close quarters. An even more intimate approach
to the desired girl has to be effected than is possible with
the piece of betel-nut or tobacco of the previous ritual.
For some of the aromatic oil must be smeared upon her
body, or poured on to her face, or, best of all, applied
to her breasts. Thus close physical contact is needed, and
for this, opportunities are given in games, in dances, in
tribal festivities, and in the rhythmic round called the
karibom. Only when a boy is very clumsy or shy, or ha$
no opportunity for intimate approach, will he put the
oil on a piece of cigarette paper (or, in olden days, on a
flower), so that the smoke or scent may enter her nostrils.

There remains still one rite — ^that of the all-powerful
6ulwmwoyay the mint plant, which is the symbol of
charm and seduction, the main instrument of attraction in
the kula (ceremonial exchange), the herb which plays the
central part in the myth of the origins of love, and which
figures also in the culminating act of love magic. This

370

RITE AND SPELL IN LOVE MAGIC

ritual would still be performed, even if the magic had
been successful at an earlier stage. For sulumwoya gives
a full and undivided sway over the loved one's heart.
Boge htfaykt kutnaydonay maglla yaklda^ "Already she
will refuse all others j her desire is only for us." This
is the formula of the sulumwoya magic in the kayroHwa
system.

Sulumwoya Spell

O, her sensual excitement!

O, her erotic swoon!

O, desire, O feminine swoon !

My clasping, thy clasping, kindle our erotic swooning!

My embraces, thy embraces, kindle our erotic swooning!

My copulation, thy copulation, kindle our erotic swooning!

The same complicated phrasing is repeated with a
number of words inserted instead of clasping, embracing
and so forth. The words are: horizontal motion {bila-
bala)y horizontal repose {bilamafu)^ erotic scratching
{kimaU\ erotic biting {kayalu)^ nose rubbing {yayaulo\
and eyelash biting {mitakuku)y lousing {kofokutu\ rub-
bing each other's lips (kawidova). Then come the fol-
lowing sentences:

My going first, thy following, kindle our erotic swooning,
My waiting, thy waiting, kindle our erotic swooning.

and finally:

Thou goest my way, crying for me,

Thou enterest my house, smiling at me.

The house is shaken with joy, as thou treadest my floor.

Tease and tear out my hair,

Drink my blood.

So that my feelings are glad.

This is a long formula — ^the longer since, as in all
Trobriand magical spells, the middle part, the litany, is

MAGIC OF LOVE AND BEAUTY

always repeated over and over again, and not necessarily
in the same order. It is chanted over a mint plant boiled
in coco-nut oil. If the magic is practised on someone
whose love has already been captured, there is no difficulty
in spilling the scented and charmed oil over her, or
anointing her with it. If she is not yet subdued, the
problem remains of entering her hut at night, and spill-
ing some of it below her nostrils, so that she may dream
of the magic maker. But if this is achieved the spell is
irresistible.

Less certain methods are to smear the oil over her
hands, or bring some of it near to her facej or to take a
sweet-smelling sprig of herbs, dip it in the oil and flick
it under her nose. These three methods obviously make
her cognizant that love magic is being employed j and this
produces the desired effect — ^psychologically at least, if
not magically!

As an additional charm, the same formula may be re-
cited over the long spine of a fish called ufnlaybasiy a prick
from which inflicts a lasting and smarting pain. Holding
it in the hollow of his hand, the boy brings his lips close
to his hand and chants the spell into it, after which the
spine may be put into the stopper of the coco-nut bottle
in which the oil is being kept. Or else, holding it in the
hollow of his hand, the boy may stab the girl with his
finger in the ribs or thereabout j or, during the kariboniy
he may make one of those even more intimate insertions
already mentioned (ch. ix, sec. 3).

372

REALITIES OF LOVE MAGIC

THE REALITIES OF LOVE MAGIC

A direct and consecutive statement of a complex and
somewhat chaotic subject such as that of love magic
inevitably suggests more precision and system than ac-
tually exists, especially when the component parts hang
together, at least in theory. And it is well to realize that
actual proceedings are never as complete and well de-
fined as might appear from native statements.

A certain amount of complication is introduced by the
fact that there are a number of different systems. The
most famous one is that of KayroHwa. But the systems
of Kwoygafani and LibofnatUy from the islands of
Vakuta and Kayleula respectively, are also prominent.
These systems, being perhaps the most widely known
and practised, have now become mixed up and few natives
have a complete set of formulas belonging to the same
system. As a matter of fact, only a few of my informants,
even among those who boasted of having a powerful set
of formulae, could go through a full set satisfactorily.
Each knew two or three or only one spell. I may add
that perhaps no native in the Trobriands would be able
to judge magical texts as well as myself. For no human
memory is a match for a written comparative collection.
Towards the end of my field-work, I found little diffi-
culty in deciding whether a spell recited to me was genuine
or corrupt j and, in the latter case, whether it was delib-
erate deception, self-deception, or deception on the part

373

MAGIC OF LOVE AND BEAUTY

of my informant's predecessor, or just lack of memory*

What matters to us is that few natives are in posses-
sion of a full system in an unadulterated form. A youth
who knows his spell or two — sometimes only a frag-
ment— ^will as a rule genuinely believe that there is a
great deal of virtue in itj very often experience
strengthens his belief. He will recite his fragment or his
full charm over the kaykakaya leaves, and if unsuccess-
ful he will try his formula over the other herbs.

Each rite has a certain positive effect on him and usually
also on his sweetheart. The washing magic gives him
the conviction of increased strength and power to attract,
an attitude very favourable to his enterprise. The same
magic makes him hope that the girl has dreamed of him,,
and that she is ready to receive his advances. He ap-
proaches her with confidence, and jokes with her without
embarrassment.

The other rites afford a still more material help in
love-making. All of them imply a direct contact j a gift,
an erotic touch, the wafting of some scent. Thus not only
does he believe in his magical powers, but she also is
made aware that he is working on her heart. And she
also is susceptible to the influence of belief and tradition.
If he is hopelessly repulsive to her, this need not shatter
her belief in love magic. She concludes that his rites are
spurious and his formulae badly recited. But if he has
the least attraction for her, it is easy to see how magic will
do its work.

These conclusions are based on observation of native
behaviour, on statements of natives, and on the actual

374

REALITIES OF LOVE MAGIC

working of love magic in cases analysed to me by my
friends as they were proceeding.

The deep conviction of the natives in the virtue of love
magic and their belief that it is the only means of wooing,
have already been mentioned. All a man's hopes of suc-
cess, his boasting and his anticipations are based on con-
fidence in his magical equipment, exactly as all failure is
attributed to lack or impotence in this respect. I have
already several times alluded to Gomaya: vain, arrogant,
and wilful, yet with remarkable personality. He always
used to vaunt his success with women, and invariably in
terms of magic. He would say: "I am ugly, my face is
not good-looking. But I have magic, and therefore all
women like me." He would then boast of his intrigues
with Ilamweria, of the attachment that his cross-cousins
had for him, and of other amorous successes, some of
which have already been mentioned in this volume. My
other informants were one and all agreed in their convic-
tion of the potency of love magic. To a direct question
I would always receive the same answer: "If one man is
good-looking, a good dancer, and a good singer, and he
has no magic j while the other man is ugly, lame, and
dark-skinned, but has good magic 3 the first will be re-
jected, the second will be loved by women."

This, of course, is exaggeration for the sake of em-
phasis, typical of a Melanesian's way of presenting mat-
ters. All natives know the magic, yet not all by any
means have the same success. Met by such an argument,
the natives will say that the man who has success has it
because his magic is "keen and strong." And here the

375

MAGIC OF LOVE AND BEAUTY

fiction of native belief comes nearer to reality. A man of
intelligence, of strong will, personality, and tempera-
ment, will have greater success with women than a beauti-
ful but soulless dullard — in Melanesia as in Europe. A
man who is convinced that he is going the right way to
workj a man who has the energy to find out who has the
best magic and the industry to acquire and learn it, such
a man will be good at love-making as well as at magic.
The native belief thus expresses some truth, though it is
psychological rather than physical or occult, and refers to
results rather than to mechanism.

Gomaya was a case in point. The five sons of To'uluwa
and Kadamwasila were all pleasant and clever, attractive
and enterprising, and were all renowned for their love
magic. As a matter of fact, the first and last of the
formulas here given I received from Yobukwa'u who,
knowing only two out of the four charms, yet achieved
an incestuous love-affair with his father's youngest wife,
several adulteries, and two engagements one after the
other. All these affairs were attributed to love magic j
as was the case with Kalogusa, his younger brother, who
subdued Yobukwa'u's fiancee, Isepuna. Another of the
five brothers, Gilayviyaka, with whose intrigues too we
are already acquainted, was also reputed to be an expert
at love magic. Many more examples could be adduced,
but it is better to keep to the more notorious cases.

Bagido'u, the nephew and heir-apparent of the prin-
cipal chief, an extremely intelligent and pleasant infor-
mant, was ill of some internal wasting sickness, probably
tuberculosis. We have already heard of his domestic

376

REALITIES OF LOVE MAGIC

mishaps, the defection of his handsome wife, who left him
in order to join her late sister's husband, Manimuwa, a
young, healthy and handsome man of Wakayse (see ch.
vi, sec. i). She often visited her sister, and during the
latter's last illness she stayed for a long time with her
brother-in-law. The issue was obvious: Manimuwa and
Dakiya formed an attachment and entered upon an illicit
intrigue, which ended in her joining him. Magic was
blamed for all the trouble. Even Bagido'u himself, the
deserted husband, would say that she was a good woman,
but that this bad man had first performed evil magic to
estrange her from her husband, and afterwards love magic
to seduce her. Dakiya, in fact, was quoted as the classical
instance of the power of magic. "Magic made the mind
of Dakiya 5 Manimuwa only remains in her mind." The
comic side of this otherwise sad story was that Bagido'u
had the reputation of being the greatest expert in the
magic of love. Of course, my informants were ready
with explanations of the theoretical conundrums involved.
Finally to return once more to a story which is a case
in point: the tragedy of Namwana Guya'u's expulsion
from the village by the kinsmen of Mitakata (see ch. i,
sec. 2). On my return after more than a year's absence
from the Trobriands, I met Namwana Guya'u in one of
the southern villages. His hatred of Mitakata was as
implacable as ever. When I asked him what had hap-
pened to his enemy, he told me that the wife of Mitakata,
Orayayse, had rejected him (see pi. 25). She was, as a
matter of fact, the first cousin of her husband's enemy,
and I knew that her husband had sent her away for

377

MAGIC OF LOVE AND BEAUTY

political reasons. But Namwana Guya'u hinted that he
had estranged her feelings from her husband by magic.
Then he enlarged on the bad habits of his enemy. "He
tries to get hold of girls and they refuse him"j yet he
had to inform me that Mitakata had married Ge'umwala,
a young and pretty girl. ^^Boge^ ivakome minana; magila
imasisi deli; rn^tage bivaHy ifayki — matauna ib?a?^ "Al-
ready he gave magic to her to eat; her desire to sleep
together 5 but to marry she refused — he took her by
force." Here then the value of the success was actually
minimized by its attribution to love magic; and the con-
sent to marriage, which cannot be won by any such im-
personal means, was denied to his enemy by Namwana
Guya'u!

THE MAGIC OF OBLIVION

In the Trobriands all positive magic has a negative
counterpart, in belief and theory at least, if not always
in reality. The magic of health and disease is the clearest
example, for, against every rite and spell which produces
disease, there is a counter-magic which cures it. The posi-
tive magic of success, which accompanies each economic
enterprise, always implies the existence of a negative pre-
ventive rite, which accounts for the possibility of failure in
positive magic.

So it is not surprising to find that love-charms have to
contend with a magic which acts in the opposite direction.
This is the magic of estrangement and oblivion, a depart-
ment of black magic, generically called hulubwalatay

378

MAGIC OF OBLIVION

though in its narrower meaning this term designates just
this magic. The root bulu on which the word is built is
also the formative element "pig" {hulukwd). Whether
this means that the prototype of all this magic con-
sists of the rites which aim at the dispersion of pigs
by malicious magic, I was unable to decide. The fact
is, however, that this magic is used for sending away
pigs into the bush as well as for estranging wives and
sweethearts.

Whenever a man has reasons for hating a girl or, even
more often, her paramour or her husband, he will practise
this magic. It acts upon her mind, and turns away her
affections from her husband or lover. She leaves his
house, leaves her village, and wanders away. The in-
formant who gave me the following spells told me that
when the magic is administered in a mild form, the girl
will leave her husband or lover, but return to her own
village and her own people 3 but if it is given in a large
quantity, and properly, with minute observation of ac-
curacy in spell and rite and in the taboos, she will run
away to the bush, lose her road, and maybe disappear for
ever. In this, as in other types of magic, the man might
recite the initial spell only in order to produce a partial
effect, that is to alienate the girl's feelings from her sweet-
heart or husband.

The following formula has to be said over a piece of
food, or some tobacco, or some betel-nut, which is then
given to the victim. It is called kahmlova (literally
"causing to reject"), and may be freely translated as
follows:

379

MAGIC OF LOVE AND BEAUTY

His name be extinguished, his name be rejected;

Extinguished at sunset, rejected at sunrise;

Rejected at sunset, extinguished at sunrise.

A bird is on the baku,

A bird which is dainty about its food.

I make it rejected!

His mint-magic, I make it rejected.

His kayro'iiua magic, I make it rejected.

His libomatu magic " "

His copulation magic " "

His horizontal magic " "

His horizontal movement "

His answering movement "

His love dalliance " "

His erotic scratching " "

His caresses of love " "

His love embraces " "

His bodily embracing " "

My kabisilo'va spell,

It worms its way within you,

The way of the earth heap in the bush gapes open,

The way of the refuse heap in the village is closed.

In the opening lines there is a play upon two words^
both of which contain the root of the verbs "to extinguish'^
and "to reject." The spell begins, therefore, with an
anticipation of its primary effect. It goes on to invoke
oblivion openly and in detail: all caresses are to be for-
gotten. Two lines follow to give power to the spell,
that it may insinuate itself into the mind of the girl,
and worm its way into all her thoughts. Finally the
jungle is opened to the girl and the way to the village
closed.

The following spell, obtained from the same infor-
mant, was said to be a stronger instalment of this magic.
It is administered in the same way, or else it is said over
some leaves and coco-nut husk, which are then burnt
above a fire, so that the evil-smelling smoke may enter
the nostrils of the girl to be bewitched. Freely translated
it runs:

380

MAGIC OF OBLIVION

Woman, woman repelled,

Man, man repelled.

Woman, woman refusing,

Man, man refusing.

She is repelled, she refuses.

Thy man, thy sweetheart, startles and frightens you,

Swear at him, by his sister;

Tell him, ''Eat thy filth."

Thy road is behind the houses

His face disappears.

The way of the earth heap in the bush gapes open,

The way of the refuse heap in the village is closed.

His face disappears;

His face vanishes;

His face gets out of the way;

His face becomes like that of a wood-spirit;

His face becomes as that of the ogre Dokonikan. .

There falls, forsooth, a veil over thy eyes

The evil magic comes,

It covers completely the pupils of the eyes.

His mint-magic is as nought.

His love-magic is as nought,

His erotic scratchings are as nought.

His love caresses are as nought,

His copulations are as nought,

His horizontal movement is as nought,

His movement in response is as nought,

His bodily relaxing is as nought.

The first period of the spell is then repeated up to
the words "she is repelled, she refuses," and it then con-
cludes:

Thy sun Is westering, thy sun goes down.
Thy sun is westering, thy sun shines aslant.
She is cut off, she goes far away,
She goes far away, she is cut off.

The only point in this formula which may need ex-
planation is the sentence inviting the girl to swear by his
sister at her husband. Such abuse is one of the deadliest
offences, and especially so between husband and wife.
We shall speak about it in chapter xiii.

Although the magic of the buluhwalata is negative in
regard to love magic, yet the evil done by it cannot be

381

MAGIC OF LOVE AND BEAUTY

undone by love formulas. But if a man, in passing anger,,
should have done great injury to a home by practising
this evil magic, there is, within its own system, a possible
remedy in the "fetching back" formula, the katuyumaya-
fmla {katuyufnall — an archaic form of kd*ifnaUy the ordi-
nary form for "return, give back"). This formula has to
be spoken in the open, owadola wala ("just in the
mouth"), as the natives say. But the magician has ta
recite it towards the various points of the compass suc-
cessively, so that the magical virtue may reach the woman
wherever she may be wandering in the bush. This
formula also begins by a play on words containing the
formative roots of the verbs "to make up" and "to at-
tract." Then follows: —

May my buluhivalata be blunt!

May my fetching magic be keen!

I am fetching back!

From the north-eastern quarter, I am fetching back;

From the south-eastern quarter, I am fetching back;

From the jungle of Ulawola, I am fetching back;

From the jungle of Tepila, I am fetching back;

The one who is like a woodsprite, I am fetching back;

From the stone heaps, I am fetching back;

From the boundary stone walls, I am fetching back;

From the fern thickets, I am fetching back;

With the smell of mint magic, I am fetching back;

I am fetching back thy mind, O woman!

Come back to us-thy-mother.

Come back to us-thy-father.

Tear open the house.

Tease and tear off my hair,

Tread on my floor,

And lie on my bed,

Come and pass over the threshold,

Come and remain at thy dung-heap,

Let us continue to dwell together,

Within our house.

Here the intention of the opening sentences is clear,
the evil magic is to be impotent, the good magic effective.

382

MAGIC OF OBLIVION

The truant is called back from the several points of the
compass and from the two parts of the jungle (Ulawola
and Tepila), one in the North and the other in the
South, which, surrounded by marshes {dumia)^ are per-
haps the most inaccessible spots in the main island of the
Trobriands, and are regarded as the home of the bush pig.
The last part, as the reader has probably noticed, is built
on the same pattern as the formula of the love magic.
The compound words "us-thy-mother," "us-thy-father"
are constructed with the inclusive dual possessive ma.
Thus by the magical virtue of this charm the man and
woman should not only be as husband and wife should be
to one another in the conjugal house, but as the father
and mother in the parental home also.

This formula is said to be very powerful, and to have
restored married happiness to scores of broken households.

With the pious hope that this is true we may conclude
the present chapter.

383

CHAPTER XII

EROTIC DREAMS AND FANTASIES

So far we have studied the psychology of sex as it is
embodied in stereotyped behaviour 5 that is, in customs,
institutions, and in magic. In short, in order to gauge
his attitude towards sex, we have studied how a Tro-
briander acts. Now we must turn to such manifestations
of sexual ideas and feelings as are to be found in dreams,
day-dreams, and folk-tales j that is, in his free and set
fantasies about the past, about the future, about distant
countries, and above all about his life in the next world.
This chapter will be simply a record of collected data,
but even such records are inevitably made with certain
problems in view and are influenced by the mental atti-
tude of the recorder. Some academic pedants are apt to
contemn any signs of a wider knowledge or of intelligence
on the part of an observer of fact. Theory should be
eliminated from field-work, so they say 5 but to my mind
this is mere intellectual hypocrisy, under the cloak of
purism. The observations which I have made were not
recorded by some mechanical device or apparatus, but
were made with my own eyes and ears, and controlled
by my own brain. The trick of relevant observation con-
sists, in fact, in this very control. It is quite inevitable
that my field-work should have been affected by my ideas,

3.84

EROTIC DREAMS AND FANTASIES

interests, and even prejudices. The honest way is to
state them so that they may be more easily detected and,
if it appears necessary, discounted and eliminated. The
other way is to conceal them as skilfully as possible.

The observations to be recorded in this chapter were
mostly done before my psycho-analytic interest was
stimulated. In my earlier work, I looked upon folk-lore
as a direct expression of social and cultural conditions.
When I found a certain motive, such as that of incest or
breach of exogamy, in folk-lore, I felt that it was puz-
zling, but I did not see that it was significant. I treated
it as an exception which confirms the rule, rather than as
a clue to further inquiry into typical social taboos and
repressions. I paid little attention to the investigation of
dreams, of day-dreams, and of free fantasies. It did
not take me long to see that dreams did not play the part
among the Trobrianders ascribed to them by Tylor and
others, and after that I did not trouble much more about
them.

Later only, stimulated by some literature sent to me by
Dr. C. G. Seligman and by his advice, did I begin to test
Freud's theory of dreams as the expression of "repressed"
wishes and of the "unconscious," as the negative of
acknowledged and ofiicial principle and morality. In
doing this, I came upon important correlations between
folk-lore and fancy on the one hand, and social organiza-
tion on the other j and was able to discover certain under-
currents of desire and inclination running counter to the
established order of ideas and sentiments, which appear,
on the surface, insignificant and capricious, but which are

EROTIC DREAMS AND FANTASIES

in reality of great sociological importance/ That in the
course of my inquiry I had to reject far more of psycho-
analytic doctrine than I could accept does not in any way
diminish my obligation 5 and my results showed beyond
all doubt how even a theory which has, in the light of
investigation, to be partly rejected can stimulate and
inspire.

The source of illicit feelings and inclinations is to be
found in the social taboos of a community. And the
failure, indeed the explicit disinclination, of psycho-
analysts to take social organization seriously, stultifies
almost completely their own application of their doctrine
to anthropology.*

Though no reference will be made to these points in
what follows, it was fairer to indicate them at the start,
as they have played some part in the discovery and a con-
siderable part in the presentation of the material given in
this and in the following chapters.

DREAMS

Spontaneous dreams are not of any great importance
in the life of the Trobrianders. On the whole the natives
appear to dream but seldom, have little interest in their
dreams, and do not often tell their experiences on waking
or refer to dreams in order to explain a belief or justify

1 Part of my results I have published in the two books on Crime and
Custom and Sex and Repression.

2 The reader will find this argument substantiated in my Sex and Re-
pression.

386

DREAMS

a line of conduct. No prophetic meaning is ascribed to
ordinary dreams, nor is there any system or code for their
symbolic interpretation.

Our interest is mainly in sexual and erotic dreams 3 but,
in order to understand these, it is necessary to form some
idea of the native's attitude to dreams in general. And
at the outset it must be understood that by "ordinary" or
"free" dreams, I mean spontaneous visions arising in
sleep, in response to physiological stimuli, to moods and
emotional experiences, to memories of the day and of the
past. Such is the material of the dreams which come to
every human being, and they play, as I have said, a small
part in Trobriand culture, and are apparently rare and
easily forgotten.

Quite another class of dreams are those which are
prescribed and defined by custom. These are expected
of certain people by virtue of their position or of some
task that they have undertaken, as a consequence of magic
which they have performed, or which has been performed
upon them, or of the influence of spiritual beings. Such
stereotyped or standardized dreams are expected, hoped
for, and awaited j and this might easily account for the
frequency of their occurrence and for the ease with which
they are remembered.

It should be noted that the distinction between free
and standardized dreams is not made in native termi-
nology nor even formulated in native doctrine. But as
will presently be seen, it is embodied in behaviour and
in the general attitude towards dreams.

In standardized dreams, a prominent part is played by

387

EROTIC DREAMS AND FANTASIES

nsions of departed spirits. They appear to people in
sleep under appropriate circumstances and at certain
seasons. This is in fact one of the chief ways in which
they manifest their existence to the living. But not all
dreams about the departed are regarded as true. The
appearance may be either a sasofa (lie, illusion) or a real
haloma (spirit). Real spirits always come with a pur-
pose and under conditions in which they can properly be
expected. Thus if a recently dead person appears in
sleep to a surviving relative, giving him some important
message or announcing his death at a distance — ^such a
dream is true. Or when a well-known seer or spiritistic
medium is visited in his sleep and next day announces the
message he has received, no one doubts the reality of his
vision. Or when people go to the island of Tuma and
there dream of dead relatives, no doubt exists in the na-
tive mind that these really have appeared to them. Or
again, in the moon of milamalay when the spirits of the
dead return to the villages, they will appear to the head-
man, or to some other notable person, in his sleep and
convey to him their wishes. Several such nocturnal visits
occurred during my residence in the Trobriands.^ At
times a substitution will take place, as when an old woman
appeared to her son and told him that she was dead, while,
in reality, it was the mother of another boy working on
the same plantation who had died in the distant Trobri-
ands. But there are also visions of dead friends and rela-
tives who tell untrue things, announce events which never

1 Cf. my article in the Journ. of the R. Anthrop. Inst., 1916, sec. 3, pp.
36a sq.

388

DREAMS

happened, or behave in an unseemly manner. Such
dreams are not caused by spirits, who, say the natives,
have nothing to do with themj and they are not true.

Another important type of dream in which spirits play
a part are those which are Initiated by some condition in
the dreamer. Whereas In visitations at the mllamala^ or
from the spirit island of Tuma, or directly after the death
of some person, it Is the recently deceased who are seen,
in this other class of dreams ancestral spirits of old stand-
ing are active. Thus when a child Is to be born (see ch.
viii), the spirit of an ancestress appears and announces the
coming Incarnation. More Important are the visits of
ancestral spirits associated with the art of magic, in which
spirits play a considerable part. Many spells begin with
a list of persons who have at one time wielded this magic.
Such lists of ancestral names are perhaps the most uni-
versal feature of Trobriand spells. In certain magical
rites., spirits receive offerings of food with a short invo-
cation j In return they show some concern for the aims of
the rite and communicate with the magician, thus afFect-
Ing not only the ritual but also the practical activity which
goes with it. For a magician has In most cases not merely
to utter the spell and perform the ritual, but also com-
prehensively to control the practical activity with which
his magic is connected.

To put it more concretely: the ex ojficio leader of a
kula expedition, the traditional organizer of fishing and
hunting, the hereditary master-In-charge of the gardens.
Invariably wields the magic proper to these pursuits. In
virtue of both offices, he Is credited with deeper knowl-

389

EROTIC DREAMS AND FANTASIES

edge and greater foresight than his associates. For one
thing, he is liable, under the control of ancestral spirits,
to dream about his enterprise. Thus the master of the
gardens, in dreams inspired by his predecessors in office,
will learn of impending drought or rain, and he will give
advice and orders accordingly. The fishing magician
hears from his ancestral spirit of shoals coming through
this or that passage in the reef, or swimming along a cer-
tain channel on the lagoon, and he will order his team to
set out in the morning and to cast their nets at the appro-
priate spot and hour.^

A cynical ethnographer might be tempted to suspect
that such prophetic dreams are double-edged: when they
come true, this is not only practically useful, but proves
the goodwill of ancestors and the validity of magic 5 when
they do not come true, it is a sign that the spirits are angry
and that they are punishing the community for some rea-
son, and still the truth of magical tradition is upheld.
The dream in any case serves its purpose to the magician.
And indeed, in these latter days of disbelief and decay
of custom, the spirits have frequent occasion to become
angry, and the magician needs all the means at his dis-
posal to vindicate his personal authority and to maintain
belief in his powers. But in the old days, as even now in
districts with an unimpaired tradition, there was no ques-

1 Compare the more detailed descriptions of these facts given in other
places: for the part played by ancestral spirits in magic, article on
"Baloma: The Spirits of the Dead in the Trobriand Islands," Journal of
the Royal Anthropological Institute, 1916, pp. 384-482; for prophetic
dreams, p. 366; for milamala dreams, p. 379; for pregnancy dreams, chap,
vii of this book and "Baloma," pp. 406-18; for the psychology of magical
filiation and the relation between magic and myth, Myth in Primitive
Psychology, and chap, xii of Argonauts of the Western Pacific.

DREAMS

tion of made-up dreams. In any case they were not born
of anxiety for his own position, but of care for the success
of the enterprise he was controlling. The garden magi-
cian, the head fisherman, the leader of an expedition,
identifies himself to a great extent in ambition, in hope,
and in eflFort, with the communal interest. He is ex-
tremely keen that all should go well, that his village
should surpass all others, that his ambition and pride
should be justified and win the day.

There are also dream revelations connected with the
black magic by which disease and death are produced.
Here it is the victim who has the vision, and, in fact, this
is one of the ways of detecting which sorcerer, by evil
spells and rites, has caused his illness. Since the sick man
always suspects one or other among his enemies of prac-
tising or of purchasing sorcery, it is no wonder that such
dreams reveal a culprit. However, they are naturally not
regarded as "subjective," but as a by-product of the evil
magic.

Yet another class of dreams, to which allusion has
already been made (ch. xi, sec. 7), is the dream induced
by magic not indirectly and secondarily, but as its main
effect. The natives have a definite theory of magic acting
through dreams upon the human mind. In connection
with the half-commercial, half -ceremonial exchange of
the kulay the magic of compulsion to generosity (the
mwasila) will be performed, and this acts upon the mind
of the other party to the transaction. Although distant
hundreds of miles and separated by stormy seas and
reefs, the latter will be visited by the "dream response"

391

EROTIC DREAMS AND FANTASIES

(kirisala) of this magic. He will dream agreeably and
benevolently of the magic maker, his mind (nanola) will
soften towards him, and he will be generous in his prepa-
ration of gifts/

Some forms of love magic described in the previous
chapter are based on the same assumption. Erotic dreams
(kirisala) are the response to certain charms. Dreams of
a sexual or erotic nature are in fact always attributed to
magic. A boy or girl dreams of a person of the opposite
sexj this means that this person has performed love magic.
A boy dreams that a certain girl enters his house, speaks
to him, approaches him, lies beside him on the mat,
though before she had been unwilling to talk to him or
even to look at him. Her shyness has been only pretence.
All the time she was preparing or even performing magic.
In the dream, she is loving and submissive j she permits
all caresses and the most intimate approach. The boy
wakes up: "It is all an illusion (sasopa, literally, a lie),"
he thinks. "But no, there is seminal fluid spilt over the
mat." The girl, in her dream-form, has been there. He
knows that she makes magic for him and already is half-
inclined to pursue her. This is an account, noted down
partly in native as it was given to me, from the man's
point of viewj but an analogous dream would come to a
girl. It is characteristic that the dream takes place, not
in the mind of the performer, but in that of his victim.

A married man would try to conceal such visitations

1 1 am afraid I have not made this point quite clear in Argonauts of
the Western Pacific (cf., however, pp. 102, 202, 203, 360, and 361). Most
spells of the kula magic act at a distance upon the partner's mind, even
as they are recited at home.

392

DREAMS

from his wife, for she would be angry because he had had
congress in dreams with another woman. Also she would
know that the other woman had made magic and would
be specially watchful, so that the man would find it diffi-
cult to follow up the dream intrigue.

One very important class of erotic dreams are those of
an incestuous nature. There are, however, serious diffi-
culties in the way of any inquiry about them. Free and
easy as these natives are, by custom and convention, in
most sexual matters, they become extremely sensitive and
prudish whenever their specific sexual taboos are touched
upon. This is especially true of incest taboos, and above
all of that one concerning the brother-sister relation. It
would have been quite impossible for me to inquire di-
rectly into the incestuous dream experiences of any of my
informants 5 but even the general question, whether inces-
tuous dreams occurred, would be met with indignation or
vehement denial. Only by dint of very gradual and
guarded inquiry among my most trustworthy informants,
was I able to find out that such dreams do occur and that,
in fact, they are a well-known nuisance. "A man is some-
times sad, ashamed and ill-tempered. Why? Because
he has dreamed that he had connection with his sister,"
and "This made me feel ashamed," such a man would
say. The fact that the incestuous dream, especially as
between brother and sister, occurs frequently and disturbs
the minds of the natives considerably, accounts in part for
!he strong emotional reaction to any inquiry into the sub-
ject. The lure of "forbidden fruit," which everywhere
haunts men in dreams and day-dreams, suggests inces-

393

EROTIC DREAMS AND FANTASIES

tuous motives in Trobriand folk-tales and has for ever
associated love and the magic of love with the myth of
incest (ch. xiv).

It is important to note that, as we shall see presently,
even incestuous erotic dreams are excused on the ground
that some magic has been misapplied, accidentally mis-
directed, or wrongly performed with regard to the
dreamer.

We are now in a position to formulate more precisely
the native attitude towards dreams. All true dreams are
in response to magic or to spiritual influence, and are not
spontaneous. The distinction between free or spontaneous
dreams on the one hand and stereotyped dreams on the
other, corresponds roughly to the native distinction be-
tween dreams which are sasofa (a lie or illusion), and
those which are induced by magic or spirits — that is, are
true, relevant and prophetic 5 or again to the difference
between dreams which come without, and those which
come with an u*ula (cause or reason). While the natives
do not attach much importance to spontaneous dreams,
they regard the others as of the same substance as magical
influence and as possessing a reality comparable to that of
the spirit world. The inconsistencies and lacunse in their
beliefs about dreams are similar to those found in their
ideas of an after-life in a disembodied state. Most con-
spicuous in their belief, perhaps, is the view that magic
first realizes its effect in dreams which, by influencing the
mind, can thus bring about objective changes and events.
Thus all "true" dreams may be actually prophetic.

Another interesting link between dreams and the mys-

394

DREAMS

tical doctrine of the Trobriander is the recurrence o£
clairvoyant visions in myths and folk-tales — a subject
only to be touched on here. Thus we shall see in the
myth of the origins of love, that the man from Iwa is led
to discover the tragic double suicide and the magical spray
of mint by a dream of what has occurred in the grotto.
In a myth about the origins of sorcery, a brother sees in
a dream that his sister has been killed by the primeval
crab-wizard. In a folk-tale to be related presently, about
the snake and the two women, a man from Wawela
dreams of the distressed maiden and comes to her rescue.
In other folk-tales, events happening in a different place
are visualized, or a rhyme sung at a distance acts as a
spell and produces day-dreams.

It is clear that dream, day-dream, magical incantation,
realization by ritual and mythological precedent are
welded into an interlocking system of self -confirmatory
realities. Dreaming is conceived as one of the real mani-
festations of magic, and, as it is a definite personal expe-
rience, it brings home the efficacy of the specific magic
employed. It is thus an important empirical link in the
doctrine of magical efficiency and of mythological reality,
one which should not be overlooked if we want to under-
stand the psychology of belief among the Trobrianders.

The subject of dreams in general, and erotic dreams in
particular, throws valuable light on the natives' flow of
imagination and desire. The psychology of their dreams
is closely parallel to that of romantic love and of "falling
in love." In native tradition and official doctrine we find
a distrust of spontaneous and free elements, of untram-

395

EROTIC DREAMS AND FANTASIES

melled and unprescribed impulses in conduct. Similarly
we find that the legitimate and true in dreams is always
due to some definite motive, once for all laid down by
tradition j and among the motives by far the most impor-
tant is magic.

That this official view does not cover the facts, that it
is not completely true to them, is obvious. In dreams
as in romantic love and love impulse, human nature
breaks through and flatly contradicts dogma, doctrine, and
tradition. Incestuous dreams are the best example of this.
Established doctrine in the Trobriands as elsewhere makes
use of man's susceptibility to authoritative suggestion, and
of his tendency to be impressed by positive instances and
to forget negative ones. It first makes the distinction
between true and false dreams 3 then minimizes, explains
away, or forgets contradictory instances, while using all
confirmatory ones as further proof of its validity. Thus
incest, whether in myth, reality, or dream, is always ex-
plained by an accidental misuse of magic. This motive is
as clear and prominent in the Trobriand story of incest as
in our own myth of Tristan and Isolde.

SEX IN FOLK-LORE STRING FIGURES

In passing to the expression of sex in folk-lore, we must
bear in mind that Trobriand manners do not ban sex as
a subject for conversation, save in the presence of certain
tabooed relatives, and Trobriand morals do not condemn
extra-marital intercourse, except in the forms of adultery

396

STRING FIGURES

and incest. The attraction of the subject and its piquancy
is not due, therefore, to the feeling that it is socially and
artificially forbidden. And yet there is no doubt that the
natives regard bawdiness as "improper" j that there is a
certain strain about it, barriers to be broken and a shyness
to overcome and a corresponding enjoyment in getting rid
of the strain, breaking the barriers and overcoming the
shyness.

It follows from this emotional attitude that sex is sel-
dom treated crudely and brutally j that there is a con-
siderable difference in the manner and tone adopted to-
wards it by, for instance, a coarse fellow of low rank who
has no social dignity to maintain, and the descendant of
chieftains who touches sexual subjects, but touches them
lightly, with refinement, subtlety, or wit. In short, man-
ners exist in this matter and are socially valued and graded
according to rank. Sex, like excretory functions and
nudity, is not felt or regarded as "natural," but rather as
naturally to be avoided in public and open conversation,
and always to be concealed from others in behaviour 3
hence, to repeat, the "improper" interest in occasional
infringements.

Folk-lore, the systematized forms of oral and intel-
lectual tradition, includes significant games and sports,
carving and decorative art, folk-tales, typical sayings,
jokes, and swearing. In the Trobriands, representations
of sexual matters are completely absent from decorative
art and from dancing. The only exceptions to this rule
are to be found in certain artistically inferior modern
productions, invented under the decomposing influence of

397

EROTIC DREAMS AND FANTASIES

European culture, though not in any way influenced by
European patterns. Dancing and decorative art, there-
fore, do not fall within our scope. For the rest, sexual
elements in games and sports have already been discussed,
sex in joking and swearing will be dealt with in the next
chapter, and there remain, for our present consideration,
sexual folk-tales and the bawdy figures and sayings con-
nected with "cat's-cradles."

String figures or cat's-cradles {ninikula) are played by
children and adults in the day time during the rainy
months from November to January, that is, in the sea-
son when the evenings are passed in reciting folk-tales.
On a wet day, a group of people will sit under the over-
hanging roof of a yam house or on a covered platform
and one will display his skill to an admiring audience.
Each set of figures has a name, a story, and an interpre-
tation. Some also have a ditty (vimivina)^ which is
chanted while the artist evolves and manipulates the
figure. Many sets are completely devoid of sex interest.
Among the dozen or so which I have recorded the fol-
lowing ones show pornographic details.^

In kala kasesa Ba^u (the clitoris of Ba'u) the per-
former, after preliminary manipulations, produces a de-
sign (Diagr. A, in Fig. Ill) in which two large loops are
formed in the main plane of the figure, while at the bot-
tom of each, a smaller loop sticks out at right angles to
the main plane. The large loops each represent a vulva
and the smaller ones a clitoris. There is obviously a little

1 1 did not make any attempt to record the technique of cat's-cradles.
In each set I merely recorded the significant figure or figures, the mean-
ing and the psychology.

398

<5.

STRING FIGURES

anatomical inaccuracy in this arrangement, since in nature
there is only one organ and in this the clitoris is placed at
the top and not at the bottom of the vulva. But, no
doubt, Ba'u was an anomaly.

The figure complete, the artist skilfully wriggles his
fingers, producing a movement first in one and then in
the other of the clitoris loops. While thus engaged, he
recites rhythmically, but not without jocular inflections,
the following words:

Kala kasesa Ba^u (repeated)
Her clitoris of Ba'u (repeated)
Kam kasesam, kam kasesamy etc.
Thy clitoris, thine, etc.

which might be freely rendered: "Look, that is the cli-
toris of Ba'u, that is her clitoris. O Ba'u, thy clitoris, O
thy clitoris!" The movements and song are repeated a
number of times, to the great amusement of both onlook-
ers and artist 5 then the figure is undone, to a repetition
of the words:

Syagara dyaytu dyaytUy Syagara dyaytu dyaytUy etc.
These words are merely onomatopoetic, imitating the
rhythmic beat of the drums in dance music. Ba'u is ob-
viously a female personality, but nothing is known of her
besides what we learn from this performance. The cli-
toris is a favourite subject for jokes, stories, and allusions.
It is often used in fars fro toto figures of speech and is
regarded as a specially attractive and funny detail in the
female organism.

399

EROTIC DREAMS AND FANTASIES

A short set, entitled with some directness and sim-
plicity "copulation" {kayta)^ represents this function in
a naturally somewhat conventionalized manner. The
strings (Diagr. B, in Fig. Ill) are made to form a dou-
ble cross, in which the horizontal arm represents the
woman and the vertical the man. The strings are then
pulled so that the centre loop, which represents the geni-
tals, moves rapidly, up and down, and right and left, and
this, to the imagination of the amused onlookers, stands
for the characteristic motion in sexual congress. There
is no ditty to this set.

Tokay last y the adulterer (C, in Fig. Ill), is a more
complicated set and requires both hands, the two big toes
and the heels for its composition. The accompanying
commentary is just spoken in ordinary prose. The first
figure (G, i) is formed, in its significant section, of two
isosceles triangles, one above the other and touching by
the apex. These triangles represent the adulterer and the
wife engaged in the act of copulation. To indicate this,
strings are manipulated so that the point of contact moves
up and down, while each triangle in turn increases and
decreases in size. At the same time the artist declares in
unambiguous language: "This is the adulterer j this is the
wife; they copulate." The figure will not be devoid of
significance to those acquainted with the native method of
copulation described above (ch. x, sec. 12).

The figure is then dissolved to the artist's comment:
tokaylasi bila wa hagula, "the adulterer goes to the gar-
den." He then adds: layla la mwala, "the husband
comes" — ^and by that time the strings form a figure con-

400

STRING FIGURES

sisting of two loops placed at an angle (C, 2). As these
loops begin to move in their turn, each shrinking and
expanding (C, 3 and 4), he says placidly: Ikayta la
kwavciy "he has intercourse with his wife." Thus adul-
tery in the Trobriands is represented by two triangles
instead of one.

One more cat's-cradle of a purely anatomical character
has still to be mentioned. It is named after the hero
Sikwemtuya, though this personality has no other claim
to fame than his cat's-cradle. Four loops symmetrically
disposed around the central point (D, in Fig. Ill) repre-
sent the head, the legs and the two testicles of Sikwem-
tuya. Then this duologue is sung:

^^Sikwemtuyay Sikwemtuya avaka kuvagi?^^
"Sikwemtuya, Sikwemtuya what art thou doing?"
^^Bayamata la kayhaha guya^u,^^

"I guard the decorated food of the chief."
^^Bagise fuwamP^
^^May I see your testicles?"

With the last words, one of the testicles begins to en-
large and to move slowly, while Sikv/emtuya, through the
mouth of the artist, utters a self-satisfied grunting noise,
somewhat like ka ka ka ka , » . He is then requested to
show the other one,

"Tagise pliyuwela"
"Let's see the other one,"

and answers with the same words, ka ka ka ka . . , and
a similar exhibition of his second testicle.

401

EROTIC DREAMS AND FANTASIES

I should like to add that the comical effect o£ the
grunting noises, kay ka^ ka^ ka, is irresistible, and would
be as much envied by a modern (and somewhat risque)
cabaret artist, as Melanesian or West African carvings
and modellings are admired by modern sculptors. But
it is very difficult to render linguistic effects and a sense
of fun and ribaldry embodied in speech through the me-
dium of another tongue, whereas decorative art, sculp-
ture, and music speak their own universal language.

SEX IN folk-lore: FACETIJE

In the matter of stories, we will begin with the amus-
ing folk-tales (kukwanebu) told during the evenings of
the rainy season for the entertainment of young and old.
They contain accounts of avowedly fantastic and unbe-
lievable events 3 they are meant to stir the imagination, to
pass the time pleasantly, and, above all, to raise a laugh
— at times a very ribald laugh.^ A few of them are en-
tirely devoid of sexual or scatological motives, and can
only be touched on here. There is the tale about fire
and water, in which fire threatens to burn water, but
water touches it and quenches it. There is one in which
a greedy crab wants to catch the fruit collected by a grass-
hopper, but the fruit falls on him and he is killed. A
pretty story is told of a beautiful girl who is wooed by
the birds. She finds fault with one after another, and

1 For a more detailed account of the sociological and cultural character
of these stories and their relation to other types of folk-lore cf. Myth in
Primitive Psychology,

402

FACETI^

finally accepts the smallest and most modest among them.
A tale is told of the legendary ogre Dokonikanj his gar-
dens are robbed by a girl who is imprisoned by him and
then set free by the youngest of her five brothers, and
another describes a contest between the same ogre and a
hero. The latter tale is told, in certain districts, not as a
myth but as a funny story. A purely gustatory account
of two brothers, who, after a time of starvation, over-ate
to bursting point, provokes much laughter by its entirely
innocent jokes.

Only in one story does the fun turn on defecation: a
man sticks to a tree after he has relieved himself, and
dies as his relatives try to pull him free. In the tale of
the louse and the butterfly, the joke consists in the louse
emitting a resounding noise from the rectum, by which
explosion he is thrown off the butterfly's back and drowned
in the sea.

I will now relate the stories with a sexual motive, giv-
ing them in order of increasing ribaldry.

The Snake and the Two Women. — Two sisters go in
search of eggs. The younger, in spite of a warning, takes
away the eggs of the snake. The mother snake chases
the thief through all the villages, and finds her at last
roasting the eggs in her own village of Kwabulo. To
punish her, the snake enters her body through the vulva,
coiling up inside it with only the tail and the nose stick-
ing out. After which, as the natives put it:

ivagi klrlsala^ ikarisaki matala

it makes dream response it induces dream eye his
Gumwawela
man of Wawela.

403

EROTIC DREAMS AND FANTASIES

In other words, this happening brought about a dream
response, it induced a vision before the eyes of a man of
Wawela. This man comes to the rescue and, by magic,
induces the snake to creep out, when he kills it.

The Two Brothers and. the Chiefs Wife. — ^A younger
brother goes to a distant chief's garden, meets the chief's
wife there and they fornicate under a mango tree. He
is caught by the outraged husband, who brings him to the
village and places him on a high platform, to await his
death. However, his brother rescues him by magic, and
makes all the men of that village disappear by the same
means J after which the two marry the women and settle
down.

The Reef Heron and Ilakavetega, — Ilakavetega is an
old woman who lives with her granddaughters. These
go to the seashore, where they meet a reef heron who
inquires who they are. "We are the granddaughters of
Ilakavetega." "Tell her then," answers the bird, and
intones :

Kayfwada^u wila^

Full of sores cunnus hers,

kayfilipli wila,

full of small sores cunnus hers,

kayfwada^uyala wilay

sore covered cunnus hers,

kaykumikumi wila:

eaten away by sores cunnus hers:

i^usi kalu momonay

It flows down her discharge,

404.

FACETI^

akanuwast yaegu boH,

I lap it up myself reef heron.

This somewhat gratuitous insult is repeated in full and
with the same sing-song intonation to the grandmother,
who accompanies her granddaughters to the seashore next
day, meets the reef heron and hears what he has to say
for herself 3 so that his song is chanted three times in the
course of the narrative. The heron unfortunately gets
entangled among the coral on the reef, and is caught,
killed, and eaten, but the interests of poetic justice are
served, for a sorcerer kills Ilakavetega and her grand-
daughters to avenge the death of this amiable and witty
bird. Also the sorcerer copulates with each of his victims
before killing them.

The Stingaree. — In this story the ribald and dramatic
interest are nicely balanced. In the village of Okayboma
there lives a woman, mother of five sons, who is endowed
with the anatomical anomaly of five clitorises.^ In the
tidal creek of that village dwells a giant stingaree. One
day when the boys are out in the taro-garden, the sting-
aree flops up the mangrove swamp, gets into the village,
and enters the house, intoning a ribald and cruel ditty:

0 vavarty vavari, O vavari, vavari,
Vari toHy to^L

Afasisiy afanehay

1 cut it sore, I scarify it,

1 The arithmetical expert will, no doubt, discover that the old lady had
six clitorises. I reproduce the native story as it was given me.

405

EROTIC DREAMS AND FANTASIES

magusisiy magusike^iy

I want to cut it, I want to cut at it,

oritala wila inumwaya^iy

one cunnus hers slackens,

bayadi kola kasesUy

I saw her clitoris,

ba^ilituUy bitotinay biwokwo,

I cut off, it snaps, it is over.

This may be rendered, the onomatopoetic words being
repeated as they occur: ^^O vavariy vavari, vari to^iy toH —
I cut it and make a scar of it, I cut it with a will, I like
to cut at it, one part of her vulva has got slack, I shall
saw off one of her clitorises, I saw it off till it snaps and
is gone."

The stingaree then proceeds to business, copulates with
the old woman and cuts off one of her multiple append-
ages. My native informants, in their commentary, af-
firmed that the vaH had a penis j but it seems more likely
that those who originally contributed to the making of
the story were inspired by the long, saw-edged dart in
the middle of the stingaree's tail, which, were it used as
a sexual instrument, would certainly have the baleful re-
sults described in the story.

The sons come back and the mother complains 5 so the
eldest one offers to protect her next day. But when the
stingaree flops along into the village, and when he intones
his sadistic ditty, and when this chant, like a magical spell,
produces a portent {kariyala) in the form of lightning
and thunder, the son runs away and the mother is de-

406

FACETI^

prived of another kasesa (clitoris). Nor do the second,
third, and fourth brothers behave any better. Four times
does the stingaree repeat every word of his ditty and
every detail of his behaviour, until the mother is left with
but one clitoris, and only the youngest son to defend it
and to save her life. For the story assures us that she
could not survive the loss of all the five kasesa.

The youngest son prepares a number of spears made
of strong hardwood, places them all along the road \vhich
the cruel fish has to traverse from the creek-head to the
house, and then waits in ambush.

When the stingaree appears, he sings his ditty for the
last time. Now, however, he sings: "One only, a solitary
one clitoris remains. I have come, I shall finish it off j it
will be over with her clitorises, she will die." I shall
quote the end of the narrative in free translation.

"The stingaree imagines that he will enter the house.
The son sits high up, on the raised platform in front of
the house. He grasps the spear, he pierces the stingaree.
This runs awayj the man, however, comes down. He
takes the spear made of se*ulawola wood, which he had
stuck in the areca palm. He throws it, and the impact
causes the stingaree to stand up. The next spear has
pierced it also. The man runs to the nam fruit tree, takes
the spear made of tawaga wood and throws it. He runs
to the mango tree and takes the spear of hard palm wood,
he pierces the stingaree's eye. He takes a strong cudgel
and hammers the stingaree till it dies." The story ends
with the return of the elder brothers who disbelieve the
young man's story, until they are convinced by the sight

407

EROTIC DREAMS AND FANTASIES

of the stingaree's corpse. Then the fish is cut up and
distributed among those lagoon villages in which it is not,
as is usual in the Trobriands, considered an abomination.

The Story of Digamina. — ^The heroine's name etymo-
logically defines her anatomical peculiarities and her char-
acter. The root diga means "to fill out," "to pack into"j
wina is the dialectic and archaic form of wila, cunnus.
Digawina is endowed with very large and comprehensive
genitals. It is her custom to attend the big distributions
of food (sagali) made after a man has died, and to steal
more than her share j packing coco-nuts, yams, taro, areca
nuts, betel pods, large chunks of sugar cane, and whole
bunches of bananas into her vagina. Thus things mys-
teriously disappear, to the great annoyance of all others
present, and particularly of those who arrange the feast.
Her practices are discovered at last. The master of the
next distribution conceals a large black mangrove crab
{kaymagu) among the food, who cuts through her kasesa
(clitoris) and thus kills her." With this tragic event the
story ends.

The White Cockatoo and the Clitoris. — ^A woman
named Karawata gave birth to a white cockatoo, who flew
away into the bush. One day Karawata went to the gar-
den, telling her kasesa (clitoris) to look after the kiim-
kumurl (earth baking oven). The kasesa replies confi-
dently: Kekekeke. But the white cockatoo has seen
everything from the bush 5 he swoops down and strikes
the clitoris, who cries out plaintively: Klkiklkl, and top-
ples over, while the cockatoo eats the contents of the oven.
(It is necessary to imagine the big, flat mound-like earth

4.08

FACETI^

oven, the tiny clitoris standing on guard, and the cruel
white cockatoo watching sardonically for its chance. The
absurdity of the situation appeals to the natives' sense of
the ludicrous.)

Next day, Karawata says again to her kasesa: "Let us
catch pig, get some yams, and bake it all in the earth."
Again she takes off her kasesa, and leaves it to look after
the oven, and the kasesa says confidently as before:
Kekekeke, Again the white cockatoo descends from the
branch, strikes the kasesa, who, with a plaintive kikikikiy
topples over 5 and again the cockatoo eats the contents of
the oven. Next day the woman says: "I shall go to gar-
den and you look properly after the food." Kekekeke,
answers the kasesa, but all that happened on the two pre-
vious days is repeated, and Karawata and her kasesa die
of hunger.

Mwoydakema. — This hero sees two women who are
going to fetch salt water from the beach. He hails them:

Wo! tayyu vivila! Wo! mitakuku,

Wo! two women! Wo! nibbled eyelashes,

kada mitakuku yoku.

our (dual) nibbled eyelashes thou.

This, in free translation, means:

"Hullo! two women are coming. Hullo! Sweethearts,
those with whom I would like to exchange nibbling of
eyelashes."

The women answer:

O gala ikwani,
O not it grips.
409

EROTIC DREAMS AND FANTASIES

Which amounts more or less to our colloquial "Nothing
doing."

Mwoydakema then exclaims:

01 kifnali kadi kimaU yokuy

which means: "O thou, erotic scratching"; in other
words: "You with whom I would like to exchange erotic
scratches."

The women, however, walk on and leave him to the
polishing of his stone axe. But he runs ahead of them
to the beach and, by means of a magic ditty, moves the
sea, which covers him and leaves him buried in the sand
with only the penis sticking out.

The women come upon this solitary object on the
beach, and begin to quarrel about to whom it belongs.
Finally, one after the other, they bestride it, pulling each
other off, and each wanting to enjoy it as long as possible.
This to the natives is the most hilarious part of the nar-
rative. After they have gone, Mwoydakema shakes off
the sand, runs back to his axe, and hails the women again
(almost in the same words) as they walk back from the
beach. Next day the same events are repeated, and the
women have three turns each at the ^'stick" (as they call
it) on the beach. On the third day the same thing hap-
pens again, but after the women have enj oyed the "stick,"
they conceive the idea of digging it up and taking it home.
They gradually discover the various parts of Mwoyda-
kema, till he jumps up and runs away. And when they
go back to the village they have to pass him once more,
and he teases them with their performances.

410

FACETI^

Momovda. — Momovala goes with his daughter to the
garden and sends her up a tree. He looks up and sees
her genitals, and emits the long-drawn katugogova. This
is produced by giving voice on a high-pitched note, while
the sound is interrupted by the rapid beating of the mouth
with the hand. It is used to express intense emotional
excitement of a pleasant kind. She asks him why he
screamed. "I saw a green lory," he answers. The same
sequence is repeated, and he mentions another bird, and
so on several times over. When she comes down from
the tree, the father has already discarded his pubic leaf
and is in a state of erection. She is very confused, and
weeps. He, however, seizes her, and copulates and copu-
lates. After all is over, she sings a ditty which may be
rendered: ^^O Momovalay Momovala! Gut of my gut,
father my father. Father by name, he seized me, he
brought me, he wronged me." The mother hears her
and guesses what has happened. "Already he has got
hold of the girl and copulated. I shall go and see."

The mother meets them, the girl complains and the
father denies. The girl goes to the seashore with all her
belongings, and sings to a shark to come and eat up, first
her wooden board for the making of grass skirts, then
her basket, then one arm, then the other arm, and so on,
interminably singing the same ditty for each object.
Finally she sings: "Eat me up altogether," and the shark
does so.

At home Momovala asks the mother where the girl
has gone, and learns of her tragic death. His answer is
to ask the mother to take ofiF her grass skirt and to copu-

411

EROTIC DREAMS AND FANTASIES

late with him. The story describes his horizontal motions,
which are so strong that his wife complains: Yakay, yakajy
an expression of pain. But he only pushes deeper and
deeper. She complains again to no purpose. She dies
after the act.

Next day people ask him in the garden what has
happened. He says that his wife has been speared.
"Where?" "In her vagina." Momovala then cuts off
his penis and dies.

This is perhaps the cruellest story of my collection.

SEX IN folk-lore: legend and myth

Passing from the purely narrative and entertaining
fairy tales to more serious forms of folk-lore, we find, in
Kwabulo, one of the lagoon villages, a local legend of a
pronouncedly sexual character. The story is told in a
manner half-way between the serious and the jocular. It
is, indeed, a significant legend to the inhabitants, for it is
embodied in a famous song, it is associated with the his-
tory of their village and it is believed to be true, since
certain natural features in the locality witness to its au-
thenticity. Also it contains elements of the tragic, espe-
cially in the self-castration of the hero and in his lyric
yearning for his distant home. The central theme is
ribald, however 5 and when telling it or referring to it, as
they often do, the natives are by no means solemn, but
delight to exaggerate and multiply unseemly similes
about the crux of the tale, which is the long penis of the

412

LEGEND AND MYTH

hero, the legendary headman of Kwabulo. I shall quote
this story, keeping as closely as possible to the native style
of narrative.

The Legend of Inuvayla^u

In the village of Kwabulo there lived Inuvayla'u the
head of his clan, the Lukuba clan; the head of his vil-
lage. He copulated with the wives of his younger
brothers, of his maternal nephews.

When the men went out fishing, he would stand out-
side a house, and make a hole in the thatch 3 he then
thrust his penis through the thatch and fornicated. His
penis was very long; his penis was like a long snake.
He would go into the garden when the women made
koumwala (clearing the ground from debris prepara-
tory to planting); or when they fwakova (weeded the
ground). He would stand right away behind the fence,
he stood in the uncut bush and his penis wriggled on the
ground like a snake. The penis crept along all the way.
The penis would approach a woman from behind as she
was bending down to her task. It would strike her hard
till she fell, and on all fours she would be fornicated with
as the penis entered the vulva.

Or when women went to bathe in the lagoon the penis
would go under the water like an eel and enter the vulva.
Or when they went to collect shells, as women do on the
western shore (pi. 80), wading and feeling for them with
the toes in the mud of the lagoon, Inuvayla'u would for-
nicate with tfiem. When the women went to the water-
hole, he would smash their coco-nut shell bottles and

413

EROTIC DREAMS AND FANTASIES

fornicate with them. The men were then very angry for
they had no water to drink. They would abuse the
women. The women would be too ashamed to speak,
for their bottles had been broken. One day the men
ordered, telling their wives:

"Cook fishj cook taytUy make pudding of taro, so that
our revered old man eats his fill." "No," answered the
women, "we shall not do it 5 this man does wrong by usj.
when you go to fish, and we remain in the village, when
we work in the garden, by the water-hole, in the lagoon,
he does violence to us."

Then the men watched him. They said they were
going to fish. They hid in the weyka (the thick scrub
surrounding the village), they saw: Inuvayla'u stood out-
side a hut, he made a hole in the thatch j his penis sneaked
on the ground, it crept through the hole, it came in: he
wronged the wife of his younger brother. The men went
to the garden . . . (here the various conditions under
which the hero plays his foul pranks on the women are
again, enumerated, in almost exactly the same words as
before).

When his younger brothers, his maternal nephews, saw
this, they grew very angry. Next morning they ducked
him 5 they ducked him in the head pool of the tidal creek,
which comes up to the village of Kwabulo (pi. 81).

He came out of the water. He returned to his house,
his mind was full of shame and of sorrow. He spoke to
his mother Lidoya: "Bake some taytu and fish. Bake it
in the ground. Pack all our belongings and the food in

414

LEGEND AND MYTH

your big basket j lift it and put it on your head 5 we shall
go, we shall leave this place."

When all was ready, he came out of his house, which
stood on the haku (central place of the village). He
wailed aloud, facing the haku. He took his kema (axe),
he cut at his penis. First he wailed and wailed over it,
holding it in his hands. Then he cut off the point of his
penis 3 it came off on the haku in front of his house j it
was turned into stone. The stone is still there, on the
haku of Kwabulo in front of the headman's house. He
cried and wailed and went on. He stood outside the outer
ring of houses, he looked back, he took his penis and wept
over it. He struck again with his axe. The second bit
fell off and was turned into stone. It can be seen still
outside the village in Kwabulo. He cried and wailed and
went on. Half-way between the village and the tidal
pool of the creek he stopped. He looked back towards
the houses. He took his penis into the palms of his hands,
he wept over it and cut off another bit. It turned into
stone, and can be seen there not far from Kwabulo. He
came to the canoes j he looked back towards the village,
he wept over his genitals. He took the axe and cut off
the remaining stump of his penis. It was turned into
stone, and it lies now near where the Kwabulo men moor
their canoes. He entered his canoe and punted along.
Half-way down the creek he wept once more. He gripped
his axe and cut off his testicles. Large white coral boul-
ders {yatu) lie in the creek. They are the token: they
show where Inuvayla'u cut off his testicles.

Inuvayla'u and Lidoya, his mother, went to Kavataria

415

EROTIC DREAMS AND FANTASIES

(to the north of Kwabulo, a village, from which over-
seas expeditions are made south). He stole a large waga
(canoe), a mwasawa (sea-going canoe). But the owner
caught him and chased them away. They went to Ba'u
(a village further north). He took a sea-going canoe;
he told his mother Lidoya: "Put in your basket, we shall
sail." They sailed, they came to I'uwaygili (a village on
Kayleula). He told his mother . . . (here the same
words as above are repeated; then they sail again, arrive
at another village and again he asks her to put in her
basket; and so on, through a monotonous enumeration of
the villages along the lagoon and through the Amphlett
Islands down to the koya^ the high mountains on the
D'Entrecasteaux Archipelago). Inuvayla'u arrived in the
koya. There he settled, there he lived, and with him his
mother, who helped him to make gardens and cooked his
food for him. He went out to fish with a flying kite, and
with the deep sea net which has to be sunk far under the
water. His mother made gardens on the mountain slope
and she made cooking pots for him.

One day he went high up the mountain slope. The
day was clear. Far away among the budibudi (the small
clouds that gather round the horizon in the monsoon sea-
son), he saw the large flat island of Kiriwina, he saw the
wide lagoon. On its water he saw a canoe, a canoe of
Kwabulo, his native village.^ His inside grew soft

1 For the strange and impressive contrast between the green waters and
■white chalk of the Trobriands and the brown volcanic rock, high moun-
tains and deep blue sea of the koya, compare Argonauts of the JVestern
Pacific, passim. The reader will also find there accounts of the emo-
tional attitude of the natives towards the landscape and further expres-
sions of it in folk-lore.

416

LEGEND AND MYTH

(inokapisi lofo^ula). He wanted to see his village, he
wanted to punt among the mangroves of Kwabulo.

They sailed. On the sea they met a boat from Kitava.
He tells his mother: "Beg them for sayaku (aromatic
black paint) j beg them for muUpwafwa (ornaments of
shell)." The mother offered herself to the Kitava men.
They copulated with her on their canoe 5 they gave her
^om^ sayaku and a few shell ornaments. He had some
red paint and some red shell ornament.

On the landing-place at the head of the creek he
adorned himself. He went to the village. In his fes-
tival adornment he stood on the haku (central place), he
sang the song which he had composed in the koya (south-
ern mountains). He taught the song to the villagers, to
his younger brothers, and maternal nephews. He gave
them the song and the dance. For all time this has re-
mained the dance and song of the people of Kwabulo.
It is danced with the kaydehu (dancing shield) (pi. 82).
The men of Bwaytalu and of Suviyagila have purchased
it and they dance it also. Inuvayla'u lived in his village
till he died. This is the end of the story.

I obtained a few variants of this myth by hearing it
told in several villages, and also some comments which
may be added. The act of expiatory self-castration ia
sometimes made to take place on Inuvayla'u's return
home. This, however, does not tally with the sequence
of natural relics. All the stones described in the myth
still exist, though the similarity to their anatomical pro-
totypes has worn away with time, while their size must
have enormously increased. I have seen the relics several

417

EROTIC DREAMS AND* FANTASIES

times, but unfortunately I was always prevented by
weather or the time of day or high tide from taking a
photograph of the stones. Making the necessary allow-
ances for imagination and latitude in exegesis, there can
be no doubt that the testicles are in the creek — large,
round boulders just awash at low tide 3 while the glans
femSy a pointed helmet-shaped piece of white coral, is in
the central place of the village. This disposition confirms
the version given in the text.

The etymology of the hero's name indicates his fail-
ing j the inu is unquestionably the feminine particle tna^
woman, while the verb vayla^u means actually to rob or
steal; so that his name can be translated "the thief of
woman." To those who believe in the existence of an
old-time gerontocracy in Melanesia this myth will be of
special interest j for in it we have the old (male) "matri-
arch" trespassing on the rights of the younger men of his
clan and, by means of his enormous organ (the symbol
of his greater generative power, a psycho-analyst would
say), claiming all the women of the community. Some
parts of the story show indisputable signs of greater an-
tiquity, whereas others have obviously been modernized.
The simple crudity of the first part and its association with
natural features has all the interesting sociological signifi-
cance of the genuine myth, gradually degenerated into
mere legend. The second part, on the contrary, with the
song which will be quoted presently, is set in modern
and realistic conditions, and its lyrical narrative character
stamps it as a tale of more recent origin.

It is characteristic also that, in the first part of the

418

LEGEND AND MYTH

legend, the women are described as especially open to
attack during their specific privileged occupations, when
normally a taboo protects them and not only should a
man never make love to them but he should not even ap-
proach them (see chapter ii, male and female provinces
in tribal life). It must be remembered that, while
engaged in communal weeding, women are entitled in
certain districts to attack any man who approaches them
(ch. ix, sec. 8). This is certainly an interesting cor-
relation and might, to an anthropologist endowed with
some imagination and a faculty for hypothetical con-
struction, serve as a proof of the antiquity of the myth
and furnish a theory as to the custom of yausa. By
outraging the women when engaged in such occupations
as weeding and filling the water-bottles, Inuvayla'u adds
insult to injury, and in the legend we see the women
more ashamed for the manifest insult to female preroga-
tives in the broken water-bottles than for their abused
chastity. Superficially this breaking of the bottles might
appear merely an unpleasant sadistic trait in the otherwise
amiable character of Inuvayla'u. In reality, however, all
such details are sociologically very significant.

Another slight variant of the legend declares that
Inuvayla'u was not allowed to return to his village, but
was chased away immediately on his appearance. I prefer
to discard this tragic version, partly because Anglo-Saxons
do not like sad endings in fiction, partly because it does
not harmonize well with the amiable and little vindictive
character of the Trobrianders.

The song which is ascribed to the mutilated hero of

419

EROTIC DREAMS AND FANTASIES

Kwabulo is but loosely connected with the story of the
myth. The first stanza alludes to his trespasses and their
consequences, and the expiatory resolution to go away.
The coral outcrop or coral ridge mentioned in the first
stanza and the marshy ground through which the hero is
made to wander, are poetical images of that part of the
legend in which the wanderings of the hero and his
mother are described.

The second and third stanza still follow the myth.
The part of the mother, the sorrow of the son, and the
first stages of the journey are common to both song and
legend. But the song, neglecting completely the coarser
and perhaps more archaic elements of the myth, does not
mention castration. There is only the sorrow for the vil-
lage left behind and the house abandoned.

To indulge in tentative speculation for another mo-
ment: may not the first and second parts of the myth be
different stories altogether — ^the first part, a primitive
myth with several interesting sociological hints and impli-
cations 5 the second part and the song, a tale of a real or
imaginary man, who, too amorous to be tolerated in the
community, was banished from it, and, later, offered in
expiation his song and his repentance? In the course of
time the two were amalgamated in the legend, but not in
the song.

From the fourth stanza on, the song turns on the mo-
tives of decoration, of dancing, of personal renown, and
of self-glorification 5 of women admiring the singer's
ornaments, of his wandering through the villages and his
tecurring nostalgia. In all this the song is typical of its

420

LEGEND AND MYTH

kind in the Trobriands. I am giving only the first six
stanzas because I was unable to translate the remaining
ones as fully as these.

The Song of Inuvayla'u

One day they ducked Inuvayla'u.

The news of the fornication spread:

He was dipped, he went under, he came out of the water.

He turned and went to the sea —

Through the raybiuag ^ and dumia he went to the sea.

"Our mother Lidoya, get together the food,
I turn my eyes to Dugubakiki.^

My tears flow at the thought of the b'waulo ^ of my village.
My tears flow at the thought of Kwabulo, of the sweet air of Kwabulo.

Ill

"O mother Lidoya, put your basket on your head."
She goes carefully, she stumbles along the creek.
She has left Kwabulo — the house is closed up.
Inuvayla'u will not fornicate any more.
Thy house is locked up — there is no more Inuvayla'u's house.

"It Is put up — the mast at the mouth of the creek.
I seek for my song — I am taking the road — I — Inuvayla'u.
My road is Gulagola which leads to Tuma,
And afterwards the Digidagala road which leads through Teyyava.*

"Women of Kulumata, dance your dance!
Prepare for a round dance with the tubuyavi^ on your faces!
A tileica'i ^ for you — go then to my village,
Go to Oysayase — to Oburaku!" '^

'"■ Raybnvag — coral outcrop, coral ridge ; dumia — swamp marshes.
2 The landing-place of Kwabulo on the lagoon.
^B'waulo — cloud of smoke, surrounding a village.
* Both roads lead to the north-west district,
s Pattern of facial decoration.

6 Flattery-bond (cf. ch. xi, sec. 3).

7 Both southern villages.

421

EROTIC DREAMS AND FANTASIES

"It is the time for the journey, the journey to Kiriwila.i
The children tried to retain me.
I shall go my road and come to Yalumugwa.2
My dala ^ — the men ; my love — the women.
They admire my paya.^

When I come to Okaykoda, my friends will greet me.
My mind is sad.

I am a Luba man, my fish is kaysipu.
I have fallen on evil days."

The Story of Kaytalugi

Besides legends of events in a distant epoch, the natives
tell tales of far-away places. At almost every point of
the compass, if we were to believe the natives, some re-
markable country is to be found if we travel far enough.
One such place is of interest to us here because of the
peculiarities of its inhabitants.

"Far away, beyond the open sea — waluniy as the natives
say — if you were to sail between Sim-sim and Muyuwa
(i.e. in a northerly direction) you would come to a large
island. It is called Kaytalugi. Its size is that of Boyowa
(the name of the largest island in the Trobriand group).
There are many villages. Only women live in them.
They are all beautiful. They go about naked. They
don't shave their pubic hair. It grows so long that it
makes something like a doha (grass petticoat) in front of
them.

"These women are very bad, very fierce. This is be-

1 North-western district.

2 Village due north of Kwabulo.

3 Sub-clan.

^ Turtle-shell ear-rings.

422

LEGEND AND MYTH

cause of their insatiable desire. When sailors are stranded
on the beach, the women see the canoes from afar. They
stand on the beach awaiting them. The beach is dark with
their bodies, they stand so thick. The men arrive, the
women run towards them. They throw themselves upon
them at once. The pubic leaf is torn offj the women do
violence to the men. It is like the yausa of the people in
Okayaulo. The yausa has its season during the fwakova.
When it is over, it is over. In Kaytalugi the women do
it all the time. They never leave the men alone. There
are many women there. When one has finished, another
comes along. When they cannot have intercourse, they
use the man's nose, his ears, his fingers, his toes — ^the man
dies.

"Boys are born on the island. A boy never grows up.
A small one is misused till he dies. The women abuse
him. They use his penis, his fingers, his toes, his hands.
He is very tired, he becomes sick and dies."

Such is the account given by the natives of the island
with the significant name. Kayta means "to copulate" j
lugi is a sufiix denoting complete satiation. Thus Kay-
talugi means "the fill of copulation." The natives be-
lieve absolutely in the reality of this island and in the
truth of every detail of their account. They tell circum-
stantial stories of how sailors, driven towards the island
by a strong wind, will land on desert reefs rather than
risk making Kaytalugi. The distance to the island is
about a night and a day's journey If you set sail in the
morning and go ohomatu (due north), you will arrive
next morning at the island.

423

EROTIC DREAMS AND FANTASIES

• There are also stories, believed to be true, about men
who went there and succeeded in escaping. Thus, long
ago, some men of Kaulagu were stranded on the island,
driven off their course, according to some versions, dur-
ing a >^/^/^ expedition. But another story has it that they
went there on purpose. It is a custom in the Trobriands,
when work comes to a dead-lock, for one of the men to
utter a challenge. Some extraordinary exploit, some di-
version or festivity is proposed by him, which he always
has to lead, usually to organize, and sometimes to finance.
Those who are challenged have to follow him. On one
occasion the men of Kaulagu were engaged in planting
yams,. The work was very hard, the yam supports re-
fused to penetrate the stony soil. The headman cried
out: Uri yakala Kaytalugi! "My challenge Kaytalugi!
Let us go and: see the women." The others agreed.
":The,y filled their canoe with food, firewood, water bot-
tles, and green coco-nuts. They sailed. One night they
slept- on :the seaj the second night they slept on the sea,
the third; morning they made Kaytalugi. (This does not
agree with the version of other informants, but perhaps
the wind was not propitious! ) The women assembled on
the beach: ^Wa! men are coming to our country!' They
pulled the canoe to pieces, made a heap of the debris on
the beach and. sat on it. They copulated, copulated, copu-
lated j one month, month after month. The men were
distributed, each man was married to one woman. They
settled.

"They, made gardens for months and then they spoke
to their wives. 'Are there many fish in your sea?' The

424

LEGEND AND MYTH

women answered: ^Very plentiful.' ^Let us repair our
canoe/ said the men. 'We shall get some fish, we shall
eat it all of us.' They repaired the canoe, they put leaves
and food in it, they put in water-bottles and they went
away. They sailed three days and came back to Kaulagu,
their native village. Their wives, who had mourned them
and then remarried, were glad to see them, and came
back to them again. They brought home, among other
things, a new kind of banana called uslkela. You can see
usikela growing in any village now, and eat them. They
are very good" (pi. 83). And this is another proof that
the story is true, and that Kaytalugi really exists.

When I asked my informants why it was that the mefi
of Kaulagu not only survived but escaped, I was told that
they were very strong and that no man allowed sexual
access to more than one woman. And just as the women
were beginning to get too much for them, they made
their escape. It is an interesting example of how every
dogmatic version relaxes when elaborated into actual ex-
amples, even though these are imaginary.

Another story is told about a man of Kaybola, a vil-
lage on the northern shore. Fishing for shark, he sailed
far away. He came to Kaytalugi and was married by one
woman. Feeling tired of her too persistent embraces, he
made holes in all the local canoes, overhauled his own,
and then suggested to his wife that the fish were very
good that morning. He put to sea and set sail. The
women of Kaytalugi pushed their canoes into the water to
pursue him. But the canoes were swamped and the man
returned safely to Kaybola.

425

EROTIC DREAMS AND FANTASIES

When I expressed my doubt as to the reality of this
island, my informants suggested that it was all very well
to be sceptical, but at the same time I must not try to go
there on pain of never getting away again. They added
that all gumanuma (white men) would like to go to Kay-
talugi, but were afraid to do so. "Look, not one guma-
numa has been to Kaytalugi!" — another irrefutable proof
of its existence.

So far we have been discussing the less sacred classes
of folk-lore, and in these we have found the sexual mo-
tive predominant. The less the religious or moral sig-
nificance of a story — the less "real" it is to the native —
the more frivolous it becomes j and the more frivolous it
becomes, the more frequently, as in the fairy tales {kuk-
wanebu)^ does it hinge on sex. But among legends, there
is only one story which has sex as its principal motive,
that of Inuvayla'u, and only one geographical account,
that of Kaytalugi. The real myths (Jili^u) hardly ever
have a sex motive j the myths of the origins of humanity
and of the social order, for instance, are completely free
of it. Again, in the cycle of stories about the hero Tudava,
the only sexual reference occurs in the incident of the
virgin birth, the mechanism of which is discreetly and
chastely described: the hero's mother sleeps in a grotto,
and the dripping water (Jitukzva) from the roof pierces
her hymen, penetrates the vagina and thus "opens her"
(ikaripwala) y making it possible for her to conceive (see
ch. vii).

No sexual elements are to be found in the several
myths referring to the circular trade kula; or in those of

426

LEGEND AND MYTH

the origin of fishing, of canoes, and of diving for the
spondylus shell. Nor are any to be found in the myth of
old age, death, and the annual visit of the spirits.

Fire, according to legend, was brought forth by the
same woman who produced the sun and the moon. The
sun and moon wander away into the sky, but the mother
keeps the fire, concealing it in her vagina. Whenever she
needs it for cooking, she takes it out of its hiding place.
But one day her younger brother discovers where she
keeps it, steals it, and gives it to other people. This is
the only genuine myth with a distinctly sexual element.

Sex does not play a very important part in beliefs about
supernatural beings. The only exception to this rule is
the idea that some witches {yoyova) have intercourse with
tauva^u (malignant, anthropomorphic beings who come
from the southern islands and cause epidemics). Thus
Ipwaygana, a woman of the Malasi clan who was mar-
ried, against all the rules of exogamy, to Modulabu, the
Malasi headman of Obweria, has a familiar tauva^Uy who
visits her sexually and teaches her the arts of evil magic
(she is to be seen on plates 77 and 78). Bomwaytani of
Kaybola, the headman's wife and a notorious yoyova^ is
also known to have a liaison with such a malignant, super-
human instructor.

But in the Trobriands such cases are sporadic. The
belief in a witches' Sabbath which seems to obtain among
the Southern Massim, is not found in the northern dis-
trict. Informants from Normanby Island and from the
islands of the east end told me that witches forgather at
night and meet Ta'ukuripokapoka, a mythological per-

427

EROTIC DREAMS AND FANTASIES

sonality and apparently an expert in evil craft. Dances
and orgies take place, in which the witches copulate with
male beings and even with Ta'ukuripokapoka himself.

THE EROTIC PARADISE OF THE TROBRIANDER

In the Trobriands, as in almost every culture, one of
the most important dogmatic systems or mythologies is
that referring to a future life.

The Trobrianders place the spirit world on a small
island called Tuma lying to the north-west. There, un-
seen by mortal eyes, undisturbed by the troubles of the
world, the spirits lead an existence very much like that of
ordinary Trobriand life, only much more pleasant.^ Let
me quote a good description by one of my best informants,
Tomwaya Lakwabulo (pi. 37), a famous seer, a spiritistic
medium of no mean talent and imagination (also of no
small cunning) and a frequent guest of the spirit world:

"In Tuma we are all like chiefs 5 we are beautiful j we
have rich gardens and no work to do — the women do it
all 5 we have heaps of ornaments and we have many
wives, all of them lovely." This summarizes the ideas
and aspirations of the natives with regard to the spirit
world — at least, as long as it remains a matter of remote
speculation, for their attitude towards death and the de-
sirability of an immediate move to Tuma remains unaf-
fected by what they think of and hope for in the next

iCf. "Baloma: The Spirits of the Dead in the Trobriand Islands," in
Journ. of the R. Anthrop. Institute, 1916, for a preliminary account, based
on ray first year's investigations in the Archipelago.

428

THE EROTIC PARADISE

world. On this point they are exactly like ourselves.
Many a good Christian will grow enthusiastic about the
joys and consolations of Heaven without showing, how-
ever, any alacrity to repair thither.

But in distant perspective and as a picture for dogmatic
fantasy, the home of the spirits in Tuma remains a para-
dise, and above all an erotic paradise. When a native
talks about it, when he grows eloquent and relates the
traditional stories, filled out with scraps of information
gathered from recent spiritistic mediums, and elaborates
his personal hopes and anticipations — all other aspects
soon fade into the background and sex comes to the forej
sex primarily, but set about with its appropriate trappings
of personal vanity, display, luxury, good food, and beau-
tiful surroundings.

In their anticipations, Tuma is thronged with beautiful
women, all ready to work hard by day and dance by night.
The spirits enj oy a perpetual scented bacchanal of dancing
and chanting on spacious village-places or on beaches of
soft sand, amid a profusion of betel and of green coco-
nut drinks, of aromatic leaves and magically potent deco-
rations, of wealth and the insignia of honour. In Tuma
each one becomes endowed with such beauty, dignity, and
skill that he is the unique, the admired, the pampered
protagonist of a never-ending feast. By some extraor-
dinary sociological mechanism, all commoners become
chiefs, while no chief believes that his relative rank is to
be diminished or dimmed by the spirits of his inferiors.

Let us follow the adventures of a spirit as he enters
his future home.

429

EROTIC DREAMS AND FANTASIES

After certain preliminary formalities, the spirit comes
face to face with Topileta, the guardian of the road to
Tuma. This person, who belongs to the Lukuba clan,
looks very much like a man and is essentially human in
his appetites, tastes, and vanities. But he is of the con-
sistency of a spirit, and his appearance is distinguished by
very large ears which flop like the wings of a flying fox.
He lives with a daughter or several daughters.

The spirit is well advised to address Topileta in a
friendly fashion and to ask the road, at the same time
presenting the valuables which were given to him for the
journey to Tuma by his surviving relatives. These valu-
ables, be it noted, are not buried with the body nor de-
stroyed, only pressed and rubbed against it before death
and afterwards placed on the corpse for a time (see ch.
vi, sec. 3). Their spiritual counterparts are supposed to
be taken by the spirit of the deceased on his journey to
the next world, and then, according to one version, offered
to Topileta, or, according to another, used to decorate the
spirit's own person on his entrance into Tuma. No doubt
an intelligent spirit finds a way to do justice to both re-
quirements.

Topileta, however, is not satisfied with mere gifts. His
lust is equal to his greed, so that if the spirit is a female
he copulates with her, if a male he hands him over to
his daughter for the same purpose. This accomplished,
Topileta puts the stranger on his way, and the spirit pro-
ceeds.

The spirits know that a newcomer is arriving and
throng to greet him. Then a rite is performed which

430

THE EROTIC PARADISE

deeply affects his mind. The spirit arrives filled with sor-
row. He yearns for those left behind, for his widow,
his sweetheart, his children. He longs to be surrounded
with his family, and to return to the bosom of his wife
or of his earthly love. But in Tuma there is an aromatic
herb called bubwayayta. This is made into a vana (bun-
dle) and magic is spoken over it by a fair spirit-woman,
immediately before a male spirit appears upon the island.
As he approaches the group who stand awaiting him, the
most passionate, and, no doubt, the loveliest of the spirit
women runs towards him and waves the scented herb be-
fore his face. The scent enters his nostrils, carrying with
it the magic of bubwayayta. As with the first sip of the
water of Lethe, so this scent makes him forget all that
he has left on earth, and from that moment he thinks no
more of his wife, yearns no more for his children, desires
no more the embraces of earthly loves. His only wish
now is to remain in Tuma and to embrace the beautiful
though unsubstantial forms of spirit women.

His passions will not remain long unsatisfied. Spirit
women, unfleshly though they appear to us mortals, have
fire and passion to a degree unknown on earth. They
crowd round the man, they caress him, they pull him by
force, they use violence on him. Erotically inspired by
the bubwayayta spell, he yields and a scene is enacted,
unseemly to those unused to the ways of a spirit, but ap-
parently quite the thing in Paradise. The man submits
to these advances and copulates with the hostess-spirit in
the open, while the others look on, or, stimulated by the
sight, do likewise. Such promiscuous sexual orgies, in

431

EROTIC DREAMS AND FANTASIES

which male and female mix indiscriminately, congregate,
change partners and reunite again, are frequent among
the spirits. So at least I was told by several eyewitnesses,
not from the world of spirits, but from that of mediums.

For I luckily had the privilege of discussing these mat-
ters with a number of seers who had actually been in
Tuma, dwelled among the spirits, and returned to tell the
tale. Most prominent among my informants was Tom-
waya Lakwabulo, whose name had been mentioned to me
and his exploits recorded with a mixture of respect and
cynicism, before I actually met and worked with him.^
I also had opportunities of speaking with Bwaylagesi, a
woman medium, with Moniga'u, and with one or two
other lesser mediums. The details of life in Tuma given
so far are common property and form part of general
folk-lore j and my eyewitnesses only confirmed these,
though they were able to add colour and concrete vivid-
ness to them. I shall now; proceed to more esoteric in-
formation.

Tomwaya Lakwabulo was married on earth to a woman
called Beyawa, who died about a year before I came to
Oburaku. He has seen her since in Tuma, and, remark-
ably enough, she has remained faithful to him, regards
herself as his wife over there, and will have nothing to
do with anyone else. This is Tomwaya Lakwabulo's own

1 Cf. "Baloma: The Spirits of the Dead" {Journ. R. Anthr. Inst., 1916),
published before my third expedition. During this expedition I lived for
several months in Oburaku, saw Tomwaya Lakwabulo in trances and in
his sober moods, and used him as a medium. I found that in spite of the
unmasking of Tomwaya Lakwabulo, described in the article noted, he
enjoyed an undiminished prestige in his own community and in the Tro-
briands universally. In this respect also, the Trobrianders do not greatly
differ from ourselves.

4.32

THE EROTIC PARADISE

version. He agrees, however, that in this respect the late
Beyawa, or rather her spirit, is an unprecedented excep-
tion to all other spirit women. For they all, married and
unmarried alike, are sexually accessible to anybody — to
him, Tomwaya Lakwabulo, in any case. They all, with
the exception of Beyawa, make katuyausl and receive
ulatile visits.

It was long ago, when Beyawa was young and attrac-
tive, that Tomwaya Lakwabulo paid his first visit to
Tuma. He then made the acquaintance of one of the
most beautiful spirit girls, Namyobe'i, a daughter of
Guyona Vabusi, headman of Vabusi, a large village on
the shore of Tuma. She fell in love with him 5 and, as
she was so very beautiful and moreover performed bub-
wayayta magic upon him, he succumbed to her charms
and married her. Thus he became, so to speak, a biga-
mist, or at least a spiritual bigamist, having his wife on
earth in Oburaku and his spiritual wife in Vabusi. Since
that time, he has regularly frequented the land of spirits
during trances, when he neither eats nor drinks nor moves
for weeks. (At least, in theory: I visited Tomwaya Lak-
wabulo in one of these trances, and succeeded in insinu-
ating a tin of bully beef and some lemon squash into him,
and moved him to accept two sticks of tobacco.) These
professional visits to Tuma, besides being agreeable on
account of Namyobe'i, are profitable, for he carries rich
presents to the spirits, entrusted to him by their surviving
relatives. There is no reason to doubt that the spiritual
part of the presents reaches the ghosts in Tuma.

It is to the credit both of Tomwaya Lakwabulo and

433

EROTIC DREAMS AND FANTASIES

of the late Beyawa that she knew and approved of his
spiritual partnership, and even allowed her own daughter
to be called Namyobe'i after the spirit wife. Now both
wives have met in Tuma, but they inhabit different vil-
lages. This is in accordance with a general rule, for each
earthly community has its spirit colony to which the de-
ceased move after death. There are also a few villages
sui generis, not recruited from this world and showing^
strange characteristics. One of them is inhabited by
women who live in houses on piles as tall as coco-nut
palms. No man is ever allowed to enter the village and
no man has ever had intercourse with the women. They
bring forth children, but exclusively of the female sex..
Such female puritans are, however, happily the exception
in Tuma, where love, enjoyment, and lazy pleasure en-
fold the happy spirits.

To enjoy life and love it is necessary to be young.
Even in Tuma, old age — ^that is, wrinkles, grey hair, and
feebleness — creeps upon the spirits. But in Tuma there
exists a remedy, once accessible to all mankind, but now
lost to this world.

For old age to the Trobrianders is not a natural state —
it is an accident, a misadventure. Long ago, shortly after
mankind had come upon earth from underground, human
beings could rejuvenate at will by casting off the old with-
ered skinj just as crabs, snakes, and lizards, and those
creatures that creep and burrow underground, will every
now and then throw off the old covering and start life
with a new and perfect one. Humanity unfortunately
lost this art — ^through the folly of an ancestress, according

434

THE EROTIC PARADISE

to legend — ^but in Tuma the happy spirits have retained
it.^ When they find themselves old, they slough off the
loose, wrinkled skin, and emerge with a smooth body,
dark locks, sound teeth, and full of vigour. Thus life
with them is an eternal recapitulation of youth with its
accompaniment of love and pleasure.

So their time passes in dancing, singing, and all that
goes with these — festive dressing, decoration, scents of
aromatic oils and herbs. Every evening, in the cool sea-
son, when the persistent trade wind abates, or when the
fresh sea breezes quicken the air during the sultry time
of the monsoon, the spirits put on festive attire and re-
pair to the baku of their village to dance, just as is done
in the Trobriands. At times, departing from earthly
usage, they will go to the beach and dance on firm cool
sand beaten by breakers.

Many songs are composed by the spirits and some of
these reach the earth, brought thither by mediums. In
common with most such productions, these songs are a
glorification of the composer. "The glory of their hutia
(flower wreath) they singj of their dancing 5 of their
■nabwoda^u (ornamented basket) j of their facial paintings
and decoration." It was quite clear that skill in garden-
ing or carving, outstanding achievements in war or in the
Mulay were no longer objects of ambition to the spirits.
Instead we find dancing and personal beauty celebrated,
and these mainly as a setting and a preliminary to sex
enjoyment.

^ For a fuller account see "Myths of Death and the Recurrent Cycle
of Life," on pp. 80-106 of Myth in Primitive Psychalogy.

435

EROTIC DREAMS AND FANTASIES

I will quote one example of such a song, entitled
Usiyawenuj it was composed by a ghost in Tuma, and
brought to earth by Mitakayyo of Oburaku, a medium
who was already permanently settled in Tuma when I
came to the Trobriands.

I shall sing the song of idle enjoyment —

My mind boils over upon my lips —

They range themselves round a circle on the baku,

I shall join them on the baku —

The conch-shell is blown — listen!

Look! The flaming butia "wreath,

The butia of my sweetheart.

My father weeps, they start the mortuary dance for me.
Come! Let us chew betel-nut, let us throw the bubiuayayta.
Let us break the pod of the betel-pepper,
The betel-nut — my mind becomes numb!

Ill

My friend, standing on the beach — he is full of passion.

He boils over, my friend on the northern shore of Tuma.

The red-haired man dreams of me,

He has an ornamental basket.

His face shines like the moon in its fullness.

The white clouds gather low over the skyline,
I cry silently.

On a hill in Tuma, I rock my baby to sleep,

I shall go and look after my sister,

I shall put a bagido'u round my head,

I shall paint my mouth with crushed betel-nut,

I shall adorn myself with armshells on the western shore,

« « « « Jir

436

THE EROTIC PARADISE

A Trobriand song is always full of omissions and of
allusions to events well known to the listeners, and can
never be quite intelligible to a stranger. Even my native
informants, however, were not able fully to interpret this
song.

After two introductory lines, the first stanza describes
the preparations for a dance in Tuma. In the second
stanza we have the sudden abandonment of earthly in-
terests, brought about by bubwayayta. In the third, a
woman sings of a man beloved by her. She is obviously
still on earth, and her husband or sweetheart — ^the com-
poser of the song apparently — has passed into Tuma. She
looks to the north-west where monsoon clouds gather, and
weeps for him (stanza iv). In the last of the translated
stanzas she herself has entered Tuma and describes her
attire which, as with all spirits, seems to have become her
main concern. It is to her credit that she has not forgotten
her baby, though how such a sentimental reminiscence fits
into the frivolous atmosphere of Tuma none of my in-
terpreters could explain.

437

CHAPTER XIII
MORALS AND MANNERS

The sexual freedom which we find among the Trobriand
Islanders must not be mis-called "immorality," and placed
in a non-existent category. "Immorality," in the sense
of an absence of all restraints, rules, and values, cannot
exist in any culture, however debased or perverted it may
be. "Immorality," on the other hand, in the sense of
morals different from those which we pretend to practise,
must be anticipated in every society other than our own
or those which are under the influence of Christian and
Western culture.

As a matter of fact, the Trobrianders have as many
rules of decency and decorum as they have liberties and
indulgences. Among all the customs of sexual liberty
so far described, there is not one warrant of licence which
does not imply definite limits j not one concession to the
sexual impulse but imposes new restrictions j not one re-
laxation of the usual taboos but exacts compensation in one
way or another.

All Trobriand institutions have their negative as well
as their positive side: they bestow privileges but they also
imply renunciations. Thus, marriage presents many
legal, economic, and personal advantages, but it also
means the exclusion of extra-matrimonial intercourse,
especially for the wife, and a number of restrictions in
manners and conduct. The institution of the hukumatula

438

MORALS AND MANNERS

(bachelors' house) has its taboos as well as its privileges.
Even such customs as yausa, katuyausiy and ulatiley all of
which are especially constituted for licence, are hedged
round with conditions and limitations.

The reader who, after the perusal of the previous chap-
ters, still retains a sense of moral superiority over the
Trobrianders, will have to be told in the following pages
directly and explicitly that the Trobriander has just as
clear-cut a feeling for modesty in dress and in behaviour
as we have, and that he would be as shocked by us on
certain occasions, as we are shocked by him on others.
In the matter of excretory functions, for instance, he
shows far more delicacy than most Europeans of the lower
classes, and certain "sanitary" arrangements current in the
south of France and other Mediterranean countries would
horrify and disgust him. His tolerance is certainly great
as regards the natural forms of sexual intercourse, but to
compensate for this, he is free from many aberrations of
the sexual impulse. "Unnatural vice," on which we need
to impose heavy penalties, has no place in his life, except
as a subject for contemptuous amusement. He is shocked
when he sees or hears about Europeans dancing pressed
against each other 5 or when he finds a white man jesting
and unconstrained in his sister's company, or showing
tenderness to his wife in public. In fact, his attitude to
his moral rules is very much like our own, whether we
call ourselves Christians or Agnostics: he believes in them
firmly, regards their infringement with disapproval, and
even keeps to them, not perfectly and not without effort,
but with a reasonable amount of earnestness and goodwill.

439

MORALS AND MANNERS

Many things which we regard as natural, proper, and
moral are anathema to the Trobriander. And the onus
frobandi would rest on anyone who maintained that the
Trobriander's morality is wrong and ours is right, that
his limitations and barriers are inadequate and artificial
while ours are sufficient and real. In some respects his
moral regulations are biologically sounder than our own,
in some more refined and subtle, in some a more efficient
safeguard for marriage and the family. In other matters
again we might reasonably claim to be his moral superiors.
The best way to approach sexual morality in an entirely
different culture is to remember that the sexual impulse
is never entirely free, neither can it ever be completely
enslaved by social imperatives. The limits of freedom
vary J but there is always a sphere within which it is deter-
mined by biological and psychological motives only and
also a sphere in which the control of custom and conven-
tion is paramount.

It was necessary to clear the ground before proceeding
to the subject of this chapter, for there is no greater
source of error in sociology than a false perspective in
sexual morality 5 and it is an error especially hard to con-
found, as it is based on ignorance which does not want to
be enlightened and on intolerance which fears the wider
charity of understanding.

DECENCY AND DECORUM

As we know, the natives not only have definite laws,
stringent in their application and enforced by punish-

440

DECENCY AND DECORUM

mentSj but also a sense of right and wrong and canons of
correct behaviour not devoid of delicacy and refinement.

The forms and customs which are associated with the
conduct of such elementary physiological functions as eat-
ing and drinking, defecation and micturition are a good
illustration of this, and are also illuminating and relevant
to our immediate subject, sexual manners.

Eating is not regarded as indispensable to life, nor is
the value of food as a utility recognized and formulated
by the natives. In fact, they have no idea that there is
such a thing as physiological need for alimentation, or
that the body is built up on food. According to them,
one eats because one has appetite, because one is hungry
or greedy. The act of eating is very pleasant, and it is
a suitable expression of a joyful mood. Large accumula-
tions of food (pi. 84), their formal distribution (sagali)
and, at times, their immediate, though not public, con-
sumption form the core of all native festivities and cere-
monies. "We shall be glad, we shall eat till we vomit,"
say the natives, in anticipation of some tribal ceremony
or festival. To give food is a, virtuous act. The provider
of food, the organizer of many big sagali (distributions)
is a great man and a good man. Food is displayed in all
forms and on all occasions, and they show great interest
in new crops, in a rich yield of garden produce, and in a
large catch of fish (see pi. 85).

Yet meals are never taken in public, and eating is alto-
gether regarded as a rather dangerous and delicate act.
Not only will people never eat in a strange village, but
even within the same community the custom of eating
in common is limited. After a big distribution, the people

441

MORALS AND MANNERS

retire to their own fireplaces with their portion, each group
turning its back on the rest. There is no actual con-
viviality on a large scale. Even when the big communal
cooldng of taro takes place, small groups of related
people assemble round the pot which has been allotted to
them, and which they have carried away to a secluded
spot. There they eat rapidly, no one else witnessing the
performance (pi. 86).

In fact, eating is rather a means of social division and
discrimination than a way of bringing people together.
To begin with, distinctions of rank are marked by food
taboos. People of the highest rank are practically con-
strained to eat within their own circle, and those of a lower
status have to forgo part of their normal diet if they
eat in the presence of their superiors, in order not to
shock them. Table manners are thus a household affair
and are not very polished. Food is eaten with the fingers j
and smacking of lips, noisy expressions of enjoyment and
belching are not considered incorrect. To be intently con-
centrated on one's food and to eat voraciously is, however,
thought to be ugly.

Plenty in the matter of food is good and honourable,
scarcity is shameful and bad. But opulence in food is a
matter of privilege, to be enjoyed in safety only by chiefs
and people of higher rank. It is distinctly dangerous for
a commoner to be too good a gardener, to have too big,
too richly decorated and too well-filled yam houses. The
chief distributes food in the form of gifts, he receives it
in the form of tribute. He alone should have decorated
yam houses j he must surpass everybody in the display

442

DECENCY AND DECORUM

of food during the milamala (the return of the spirits),
at ceremonial distributions and during the harvest.

Psychologically interesting is the magic called vila-
fi^alia. It is directed against the elementary impulse to
€at and takes away appetite, so that the food remains in
the yam houses until it rots. Malta (plenty) and molu
(scarcity or hunger) are very important categories in
native life.^ Molu is bad and shameful. It is a terrible
insult to tell a man he is hungry 3 to say to him: gala kam
("no food thine" — "thou hast no food") or togalagala
yoku ("thou art a man of no substance"). The use of
scarcity and hunger as means of insult is an illustration
of the ways in which shortcomings can be brought home
to the natives. A man will endure real hunger rather than
expose himself to the sarcastic question: "Is there no food
in thy village?"

To sum up : the act of eating is regarded by the natives
as an expression of a powerful impulse, of a strong pas-
sion. As such it is an important part of the ordinary
routine of lifej the evening meal is as indispensable a
domestic event as rest after work and conversation with
the neighbours. It also occupies an important place in
every festival and within the realms of the sacred. Food
is a means of emphasizing social distinctions, whether of
rank or in tribal grouping, and thus indirectly provides a
tond of social union. What happens in the alimentary
duct after the food has been swallowed is not a matter
of concern to the natives 5 nor does metabolism influence

1 Cf. my article, "The Lunar and Seasonal Calendar in the Frobri-
ands," Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute, 1927.

443

MORALS AND MANNERS ^

cultural life again until the alimentary process is com-
plete, when waste matters claim the native's attention and
demand customs and cultural arrangements for the dis-
guise of excretory processes. For, as we pointed out when
describing the care of the body (see ch. x, sec. 4), the
natives have a strong sesthetic feeling against uncleanli-
ness, whether in their own persons or in their surround-
ings. Unpleasant smells and unclean matters disgust
them, especially if they are of an excretory nature.

For this reason the greatest hardship of mourning lies,
not in the covering of the body with soot or charcoal, but
in the taboo on ablutions. Excretion within the house is
quoted as a very heavy burden on those confined by
mourning or disease and on their relatives who have to
perform the necessary services. The duty of receiving
the excreta of small children in receptacles, with the lia-
bility of becoming soiled and the necessity of carrying
the dirty matter into the bush, is often mentioned as one
of the hardships which give to parents, and especially to
the father, a permanent claim on the gratitude of the
child. It is also quoted as a reason why the child should
look after the parents later on, and incidentally repay
these particular services in kind should they fall ill.

The handling of the corpse and the operations upon
it incidental to certain mortuary practices j the ritual swal-
lowing of putrid matter which is a duty of some of the
survivors, are obligations which involve heroic devotion
on the part of the performers.

Good care is taken to prevent the accumulation of dirt
in the village, above all to prevent any excretorv matter

444

DECENCY AND DECORUM

from being deposited near the settlement. Villages are
always carefully swept, and all refuse placed on the out-
skirts in large heaps called wawa. Especially offensive
matters, such as decomposing fish, are usually covered
with earth.

The sanitary arrangements consist of two reserves in
the bush at some distance from the village, the one fre-
quented by men and the other by women. These reserves
are scrupulously adhered to, and the surroundings of a
village in the Trobriands, as well as the roads, would
compare favourably with those in most European coun-
tries, especially the Latin ones.

Natives will never go to these reserves together, nor
will they ever defecate near one another. At sea, a man
will enter the water and ease himself below the surface,
supported by others in the canoe 5 for defecation both sexes
squat 5 for micturition the women squat and men remain
standing.

Certain villages, squeezed in between mangrove swamp
and lagoon, have little dry land outside the settlement,
and find it hard to satisfy the demands of sanitation
(pi. 87). In such a village each sex repairs to one side
of the beach and tries to choose a spot which will be cov-
ered by the tide. But even so they have an evil reputa-
tion, and often, in passing through one, I have seen my
native companions close their nostrils and spit freely, and
have heard their outspoken comments upon its dirt. And
yet, in these fishing villages, even the refuse of fish is
carefully disposed of, and after preparing fish for eating

445

MORALS AND MANNERS

the people always wash their hands carefully and anoint
themselves with coco-nut oil.

After excretion the parts are carefully cleansed with
soft leaves, called in this context foyewesi (po, root of
"excretion" 5 yewesiy leaves). Children are taught to
observe strict cleanliness in this respect, and a careless
child is not infrequently shamed by its parents or
elders: —

Mayna foful gala kuvaysi

Odour of excrement! Not thou wipest

kosiyam mayna kasukwanise!

thy remnant of excrement, odour we (excl.) smell!

Social distinctions influence considerably the way in
which natives are allowed to speak about the subject. The
ordinary name for excrement (popu)^ or the verb to
defecate (popu or fwaya) are never used in the presence
of a guya^u (chief, man of high rank). A special polite
word, solu or sola (lit.: "descend"), is substituted, or else
such euphemisms as to "go down" {busi)j "go and re-
turn" {bala haka^ita), A man would never excuse him-
self from a chief's presence by saying, "I have to go and
defecate" {bala bafofu)^ he would say instead: bala
basoluy or bala babusiy "I shall go down"j or bala
baka^itay "I shall go and return."

The word "excrement" is also used in the typical form
of bad language, "eat thy dirt" {kumkwam fofu or
kukome kam fofu). This expression, if used good-
humouredly, might be taken as a joke and condoned, but
it lies on the border-line between chaflF and insult, and

446

DECENCY AND DECORUM

must never be said angrily. Above all, it must never be
said in the presence of a chief, and to use it to him as an
insult is an unpardonable offence.

The following incident, which took place during the
last war between To'uluwa, high chief of Omarakana,
and his traditional foe, the headman of Kabwaku, is a
good illustration of the native attitude towards this insult
when directed against a chief. During a lull in the fight-
ing, when the two forces were facing each other, a
Kabwaku man, Si'ulobubu, climbed a tree and addressed
To'uluwa in a loud voice: ^^Kukome kam fofUy To^u^
luwa?^ Here was the insult delivered with every aggra-
vating circumstance. It was addressed to a chief, it was
said aloud and in public, and the personal name was
added, the form in which the insult is deadliest. After
the war, when peace was concluded and all other enmities
forgotten, Si'ulobubu was openly speared in broad day-
light by a few men sent by To'uluwa for that purpose.
The victim's family and clansmen did not even raise a
protest, still less did they ask for "blood money," or
start a lugwa (vendetta). Everybody knew that the man
had deserved this punishment and that his death was a
just and adequate mapda (payment, retribution) for his
crime. It is even an insult to make this remark to a
chief's pig in his hearing, though it is permitted so to
address his dog.^

The dissociation between sex and excretion, or the
excretory processes, is very pronounced in native sentiment

1 Cf. the myth of the pig and the dog below in sec 5, and in Myth in
Primitive Psychology, 1926, where its historical importance is discussed.

447

MORALS AND MANNERS

and idea. As we know, scrupulous cleanliness is an
essential in the ideal of personal attraction. Sodomy is
repugnant to natives, and their attitude to it is summed
up in the phrase: matauna ikaye fofu ("this man copu-
lates excrement"). Fseces have no place in magic, custom,
or ritual 5 nor do they even play any part in sorcery.

In my own experience I have always found the natives
very clean and never received any unpleasant olfactory
impression in my various social contacts with them. Nor,
by the consensus of opinion among white residents, is their
bodily odour unpleasant to the European.

Intestinal gases are never released in the presence of
other people. Such an act is considered very shameful,
and would dishonour and mortify anyone guilty of it.
Even in a crowd where it can be committed anonymously,
such a breach of etiquette never happens in Melanesia, so
that a native crowd is considerably more pleasant in this
respect than a gathering of European peasants.^ If such
a mishap befalls a man by accident, he feels the disgrace
deeply and his reputation suffers. Also it will be re-
membered how quickly an explosive escape of intestinal
gas was visited upon the unfortunate louse in one of the
fireside stories told in the last chapter.

Scents are as much appreciated and sought after as
bad smells are abhorred and avoided. We have seen
what an important part is played in native toilet by the
variously and exquisitely scented flowers of the Islands:
the long white petals of the pandanus, the hutia and a

1 For some interesting sociology on this subject as among European
peasants, cf. Zola's La Terre.

448

DECENCY AND DECORUM

long list of aromatic herbs, in which the mint {sulufn-
woyd) takes the leadj and we have also seen the use made
of oil perfumed with sandal wood. Pleasant smells are
closely associated with magical influence 5 and as we know
already many charms in the magic of kula^ of love, of
beauty, and of success are made over mint, over the hutia
flower, and over several aromatic herbs used as vana (tuft
placed in the armlet). Personal cleanliness is an essen-
tial in all these forms of magic, and charming the
kaykakaya (washing leaves) is an important part of the
ritual.^

Indeed, the sense of smell is the most important factor
in the laying of spells on people j magic, in order to
achieve its greatest potency, must enter through the nose.
Love charms are borne into the victim on the scent of
some spellbound aromatic substance. In the second and
very dangerous stage of sorcery, the object or compound
over which black magic has been done is burned, and the
smoke enters through the nostrils into the body against
which it is directed and causes disease {silamt). For this
reason, houses are never built on piles in the Trobriands,
as it would greatly facilitate this stage in the sorcerer's
work. Thus the idea of magical infection through the
nose exercises a considerable influence on the culture of
the natives.

The malignant witches {mulukwausi) are believed to
emit a smell reminiscent of excrement. This smell is
much feared, especially by people who are sailing, for

1 Cf. chs. viii and xi of this book, and chs. xiii and xvii of Argonauts
of the Western Pacific.

449

MORALS AND MANNERS

witches are very dangerous on water. In general the
smell of ordure and decomposing matter is thought to be
noxious tcr human health. The natives believe that a
special substance emanates from the corpse of a dead
person. This, though invisible to the ordinary eye, can
be seen by sorcerers, to whom it appears somewhat like
the cloud of smoke {hwaulo) which hangs over a village.
This emanation, which is also called hwauloy is especially
dangerous to the maternal kinsmen of the deceased, and
because of it they must not approach the corpse, nor per-
form any of the mortuary duties (see ch. vi, sec. 2).

A few words will suffice to recapitulate here what we
already know (see ch. x, sec. 4) about the conventions,
manners, and morals of dress. The various functions of
attire in enhancing personal beauty, in marking social dis-
tinctions, in expressing the character of the occasion on
which they are worn do not concern us here, but a word
must be added about dress in its relation to modesty.
Modesty in the Trobriands requires only that the genitals
and a small part of the adjacent areas should be covered,
but the native has absolutely the same moral and psy-
chological attitude towards any infringement of these
demands as we have. It is bad, and shameful, and ludi-
crous in a degrading sense not to conceal, carefully and
properly, those parts of the human body which should
be covered by dress. Moreover there is a certain co-
quettish emphasis in the care and elegance with which
women manipulate their fibre skirts whenever they fear
that dress may fail in its duty, through wind or rapid
movement.

450

DECENCY AND DECORUM

The broad bleached leaf of the pandanus or areca palm
which covers the male genitals is always put in place so
precisely and securely that no instance of disarrangement
has occurred within my knowledge. No person must ever
touch it when it is in position. The word for it, yavigUy
used with the pronoun of nearest possession as if it were
a part of the body, is also an improper word which must
not be uttered save in intimacy. It is interesting, how-
ever, that when it is necessary for practical reasons for
men to take off the pubic leaf, as during the fishing or
diving activities, this is done without either false shame or
the slightest symptom of improper interest. The natives
convey clearly by behaviour and comment that nakedness
is not shameful when it is necessary, but becomes so when
due to carelessness or lewdness (see ch. iii, sec. i, and
sees. 3 and 4 of this chap.). Though the taboos sur-
rounding female dress and its name are less stringent, it
is just as carefully used as an instrument of modesty.

I have assembled these facts from certain aspects of
intimate life, from the physiology of eating and excre-
tion and from the treatment of anatomical aspects of the
body, to illustrate native manners j and to demonstrate
that, in spite of certain things which shock us profoundly,
the natives show a delicacy and restraint in others which
not only is elaborate and well defined, but is expressive
of real moral attitudes: a substantial consideration for the
feelings of others and certain sound biological principles.
We may be shocked at a savage who tears his meat with
his fingers, smacks his lips, grunts and belches in the
enjoyment of his foodj while the custom of eating each

451

MORALS AND MANNERS

other's lice is to us decidedly unappetizing. But the
native is equally disgusted when the European gorges
himself on stinking cheese, or consumes undefined abomi-
nations from tins j or when he unashamedly eats stingaree,
wild pig or any other matters permitted only to people
of the lowest rank. He is also shocked at the white
man's habit of making himself temporarily imbecile or
violent with gin and whisky. If, to an uneducated white
man, Melanesian dress may appear inadequate, the
strange custom prevalent among white women of reducing
instead of adding to their dress for festive occasions is
upsetting and indecorous to the native who meets it on
his travels to European settlements.

Even now, when a more liberal and instructed policy
directs the relations between native and European, it is
well to remember these things 5 and to keep in mind that
wisdom and good manners alike demand that we respect
those feelings in other people which are dictated by their
own cultural standards.

THE MORALS OF SEX

Before proceeding to a detailed consideration of the
subject of this section, we will assemble and briefly re-
state the relevant facts already in our possession, so that
they may be presented to the reader in their proper per-
spective. For the inter-relation of facts and the pro-
portions they assume in native life are as important as,
if not more so than, the isolated facts themselves, if we

452

THE MORALS OF SEX

are to arrive at right conclusions and have a true picture
of Trobriand communal life.

And to see the facts from the native point of view,
that is, in their true relation to tribal life, we must again
remind ourselves that sex as such is not tabooed. That
is to say, the sexual act, provided that it is carried out in
private and within certain sociological limits, is not re-
garded as reprehensible, even when it is not sanctioned by
the bond of marriage. The barriers within which sexual
freedom obtains, the methods by which these barriers are
upheld and the penalties which fall upon the transgressor,
can be classified broadly into two groups: the general
taboos, which brand certain forms of sexual activity as
objectionable, indecent, or contemptible 5 and the socio-
logical restrictions which debar certain individuals and
groups from sexual access.

A. GENERAL TABOOS

I. Byways and aberrations of the sexual Imfulse. —
Homosexual intercourse, bestiality, exhibitionism, oral
and anal eroticism — to use psycho-analytic terminology —
are, as we already know, regarded by the natives as inade-
quate and contemptible substitutes for the proper exer-
cise of the sexual impulse. The natives achieve an almost
complete freedom from perversion by means of what
might be called psychological rather than social sanctions.
Sexual aberrations are ridiculed, they are a subject for
invective and comic anecdote, and thus treated, they are
not only branded as improper but are effectively made
undesirable.

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MORALS AND MANNERS

2. Publicity and lack of decorum in sexual matters, —
Public display of the sexual act or of erotic approaches
is almost completely absent from tribal life. Lack of
care in avoiding publicity, curiosity and any attempt to spy
on other people's love-making are regarded as unseemly
and contemptible. There are few occasions in tribal life
when the sexual act could be carried on in public, nor
does the voyeur figure even in their pornographic folk-
lore. The only exception from this rule are the erotic
competitive festivals {kayasa)^ described in chapter ix,
section 5. From the taboo of publicity only the souls of
the blessed in Tuma are permanently released, while in
the legendary accounts of female assaults on men (in the
custom of yausay and on the Island of Kaytalugi), the
openness with which copulation takes place is regarded as
an additional outrage on the passive victims. Thus sexual
intercourse, to be in accordance with tribal sanctions, must
be carried on within the strictest limits of privacy and
decorum.

3. Sexual excess, — ^The exhibition of sexual greed, or
an unabashed forwardness in courting the favour of the
other sex, is regarded as bad and despicable in either man
or woman, but more especially in woman. This moral
attitude should be strictly distinguished from the censure
incurred by those people who are too successful in love,
and who therefore arouse anger and jealousy.

4. hack of taste. — ^We have learned (ch. x, sec. 2)
the forms of ugliness and repulsiveness which are re-
garded as deterrent to erotic interest and that the natives
will even go so far as to affirm that no one could or

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THE MORALS OF SEX

would have intercourse with a person so afflicted. Behind
this mere statement of fact there is a definite censure of
a mixed moral and aesthetic character which is based on a
real and lively sentiment, even though this fails occa-
sionally in practice. It is bad, unbecoming, and worthy of
contempt to have anything to do with a human being
whose body arouses repugnance. This class of taboo has
already been dealt with (in chap, x, sec. 2), and it will
not be necessary to return to it.

5. Miscellaneous and minor taboos, — ^There are a
number of pursuits which, while in progress, entail absti-
nence from sexual intercourse and all contact with women j
such, for example, are war, oversea sailing expeditions,
gardening and one or two magical rites. Again, in certain
physiological crises, above all pregnancy and lactation, a
woman must not be approached by a man. The general
principle which such taboos express is that sex is incom-
patible with certain conditions of the human body and
with the nature and purpose of certain occupations j and
it must not be allowed to interfere with these.

B. SOCIOLOGICAL TABOOS

6. Exogamy, — Sexual intercourse and marriage are
not allowed within the same totemic clan. They are more
emphatically forbidden within a sub-division of the clan,
common membership in which means real kinship. And
the taboo is stricter yet between two people who can trace
a common descent genealogically. Yet the natives have
only one word, suvasova^ to designate all these degrees
of exogamous taboo. Also, in legal and formal fiction,

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MORALS AND MANNERS

the natives would maintain that all exogamous taboos,
whether of clan, sub-clan or proven kinship, were equally
binding. Thus, while an ethnographer would get one
impression through conversation, he would get an entirely
different one by observing the behaviour of the natives.
In the more detailed examination of the subject which
follows, we shall set practice and legal fiction side by side,
and show how these work in together.

7. Taboos within the family and household, — ^The
father is not a kinsman of his children, and therefore is
not included in exogamous prohibitions. Nevertheless,
intercourse between father and daughter is definitely and
strongly forbidden. There is no doubt that the taboo
which separates members of the same household is, in the
reality of tribal life though not in legal theory, a distinct
force which is superadded to the exogamous taboo. Not
only do we find its influence in the separation of father
and daughter, but also in the fact that incest with the
own mother and with the own sister arouses incomparably
greater moral indignation than incest with a cousin j not
to speak of incest with a "classificatory" mother or a
"classificatory" sister, which is easily condoned.

8. The taboo of adultery. — ^This safeguard to the
institution of marriage need only be mentioned here, as it
has been fully dealt with in chapter v.

9. The taboos of relationship in law. — Although
there is no formal avoidance, sexual intercourse between
a man and his mother-in-law is definitely wrong. Neither
must a man have erotic relations with the sisters of his
wife or with the wife of his brother. Marriage with a

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THE MORALS OF SEX

deceased wife's sister, though not forbidden, is regarded
with disfavour.

10. Rules safeguarding the frivileges of the chief. —
This type of restriction and those which follow are not of
the same stringency as the foregoing taboos. They are
rather vague rules of conduct, enforced by a general
feeling for what is expedient and by somewhat diffuse
social sanctions. It is unsafe to interfere with any woman
in whom a man of high rank is interested. The ordinary
prohibition of adultery becomes much more stringent
when the woman concerned is married to a chief. The
chief's wife, giyovilay is the subject of a special reverence
and of a general taboo, which, however, is honoured as
much in the breach as in the observance. For she is more
desirable and generally no less willing to be desired 5 and
there is a touch of irony and mock respect in certain
sayings and turns of speech in which the word giyovila
figures.

11. Barriers of rank. — The distinction between high
and low birth, which divides one sub-clan from another,
applies to women as well as to men. It is a general prin-
ciple that people of high rank {guya^u) shall not mate
with commoners {tokay). In marriage, this rule is strictly
kept only with regard to the pariah communities of
Bwaytalu and Ba'u, which have had perforce to become
endogamous, since no man or woman from another village
likes to enter into permanent union with any of the in-
habitants. The members of the highest sub-clan, the
Tabalu of Omarakana (of the Malasi clan), find their

457

MORALS AND MANNERS

most fitting consorts among two or three other dala (sub-
clans) in the north-western district.

In prenuptial intercourse, also, there would be some
show of discrimination. A girl of high rank would be
ashamed of owning to an intrigue with a low-class com-
moner. But the distinctions in rank are many and their
interpretation not too rigid j and the rule is certainly not
followed strictly where intrigues are concerned. Girls of
high-rank villages, such as Omarakana, Liluta, Osapola,
or Kwaybwaga, do not visit the "impure" villages, Ba'u
and Bwoytalu, on katuyausi expeditions.

12. Restrictions as to number in intrigues. — As we
have already said, too open and too insistent an interest
in sex, especially when exhibited by a woman, and too
obvious and too general a success in love are both cen-
sured j but the kind of censure is entirely different in the
two cases. In the latter, it is the male who incurs the
disapproval of his less fortunate rivals. The great
dancer, the famous love magician or charmer of his own
beauty, is exposed to intense distrust and hatred, and to
the dangers of sorcery. His conduct is considered "bad,"
not as "shameful," but rather as enviable and, at the same
time, injurious to the interests of others.

This concludes the list of restrictions placed upon free-
dom in sexual intercourse. It is clear that moral indigna-
tion varies in kind and degree with the categories trans-
gressed— ^whether these be perversion or incest, breach
of exogamy or the infringement of matrimonial and other
prerogatives. The last four categories — adultery, tres-

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THE MORALS OF SEX

pass on the chief's preserves, intercourse with social in-
feriors, and numerical excess of intrigues — embrace of-
fences which arouse neither contempt nor moral indigna-
tion j they are enforced according to the power of the
aggrieved party, backed by the passive support of com-
munal opinion. An adulterer caught in -flagrante may
be killed, and this will be recognized as legal retribution,
and not be followed up by a vendetta, especially if the
adultery be with a chief's wife (see ch. v, sec. 2). The
pre-eminently successful man— especially if of low rank
and distinguished only by personal qualities — ^would be
exposed to the danger of sorcery rather than to that of
direct violence. And sorcery also would be used against
a man suspected of adultery but not caught in the act.
An interesting ethnological document, which throws
some light on the retributive use of sorcery, is provided
by the specific signs found on a corpse at exhumation indi-
cating the habit, the quality, or the misdeeds for which
the man was killed by sorcery. The natives — in common
with most primitive races — do not understand "death
from natural causes." When not the result of an obvious
physical lesion, death is caused by black magic, practised
by a sorcerer on his own account, or on behalf of some
notable who pays him to bring about his enemy's death.
On the body of the victim, when it is ritually taken out
of the grave, are found signs {kala wabu) which show
why he was killed and thus indicate on whose behalf it
was done. Such signs may point to sexual jealousy, per-
sonal antagonism, political or economic envy as the
motive 5 and of frequent occurrence is the sign indicating

459

MORALS AND MANNERS

that the victim's too pronounced erotic propensities were
his undoing.

Thus marks are sometimes found on a corpse which
resemble the erotic scratches {kimali) so characteristic of
native love-making. Or the body when exhumed is
found doubled up with the legs apart, an attitude taken
during copulation by man as well as by woman. Or the
mouth is pursed, as if to produce the loud smacking of the
lips by which one sex invites the other into the darkness
beyond the light of village fires. Or again the body
swarms with lice, and, as we know, lousing each other
and eating the catch is a tender occupation of lovers. All
these signs indicate that the man was done to death by
sorcery because he was too much addicted to sexual
pleasures, or could boast of too many conquests and such
as gave special offence to some powerful rival. There
are also a number of standardized patterns which may be
found on a corpse suggestive of dancing decoration.
These indicate that jealousy of his personal appearance,
of his renown as a dancer and as a seducer by the dance
was the cause of his death.^

Such signs have to be noted by the deceased's own
relatives, they are discussed freely — ^generally, however,
without any mention of the suspected sorcerer's name or
of his employer's — and no special shame attaches to them.
This is noteworthy in connection with the native's attitude
to the last few taboos, that is those which safeguard the
rights of the husband, of the lover, and of the com-

1 Compare the writer's Crime and Custom, pp. 87-94, for a full list of
sorcery signs and their significance in tribal law.

460

THE MORALS OF SEX

munity. Success in love, personal beauty, and surpassing
accomplishments are reprehensible because they appeal
especially to women and always encroach upon the rights
of someone who, if he can, will avenge the wrong by
means of sorcery. But, unlike other sexual offences,
adultery and success with women are not felt to be shame-
ful or morally wrong. On the contrary, they are envi-
able, and surround the sinner with a halo of almost tragic
glory.^

Perhaps the most important linguistic distinction which
throws light upon the native psychology as regards taboos
is furnished by the use of the word bomala (taboo). This
noun takes the pronominal suffixes of nearest possession —
homa-gu (my taboo), homa-m (thy taboo), homa-la (his
taboo) — which signifies that a man's taboo, the things
which he must not eat or touch or do, is linguistically
classed with those objects most intimately bound up with
his person: parts of his body, his kindred, and such per-
sonal qualities as his mind {nanola)^ his will {magild)^
and his inside (lofoula). Thus bomala, those things
from which a man must keep away, is an integral part
of his personality, something which enters into his moral
make-up.

Not all the restrictions and prohibitions on our list can
be called by this name. And when it is correctly used,

1 It was necessary to classify taboos in some way, in order to present
the material in a form in which it could be easily surveyed. Obviously
my fundamentum di'visionis — the type of action forbidden — is not the only
possible basis for such a classification. The taboos could, for instance,
be regrouped according to sanction, intensity of moral feeling, or the vary-
ing degree of general interest taken in the prohibition. These differen-
tiating qualities, already indicated, will emerge even more clearly in the
course of the descriptions which follow.

461

MORALS AND MANNERS

its meaning is subject to many subtle variations, indicated
by tone and context, according to its application. In its
full and correct meaning, the word bomala applies to all
the acts which are specifically called by the natives
suvasova — that is, to incest within the family and breach
of exogamy. In this context, the word bomala denotes an
act which must not be committed because it is contrary
to the traditional constitution of clan and family 5 and
to all the inviolable laws which have been laid down in
old times {tokunabogwo ayguriy "of old it was or-
dained"). Besides this general sanction, which is felt to
be rooted in the primeval nature of things, the breach of
the suvasova taboo entails a supernatural penalty: an ill-
ness which covers the skin with sores and produces pains
and discomfort throughout the body. (This supernatural
penalty can, however, be evaded by the performance of
a specific magic which removes the bad effects of en-
dogamous intercourse.) In the case of incest between
brother and sister, a very strong emotional tone enters
into the attitude of the natives, that is, into the significance
of the word bomala^ endowing it with an unmistakable
phonetic colouring of horror and moral repugnance.
Thus even in their narrowest and most exclusive sense,
the words bomala and suvasova have various shades of
meaning and imply a complex system of traditional law
and of social mechanism.^

The word bomala is also used in its legitimate sense
of "taboo" for the several minor prohibitions, such as are

^ Compare the detailed account of the various contraventions and eva-
sions of traditional law given in Crime and Custom*

462

THE MORALS OF SEX

inherent in a man's office, situation or activity, and in this
application it still carries something of the idea of a
peremptory traditional rule, maintained by supernatural
sanctions. But though the only correct description for
such taboos is the word homalay it implies in this context
a different emotional attitude, milder sanctions and a
different type of rule.

In a less rigid sense homala is used to denote the taboos
of adultery, the inexpediency of meddling with what is
sexually claimed by a chief, and the undesirability of
mating outside one's own rank. In these contexts, how-
ever, the word covers only the idea and feeling of a
definite rule. It entails neither supernatural sanctions
nor the emotion of pronounced moral disapproval, nor
even the feeling of a strong obligation. This application
of the word is, in fact, not quite correct: the word
huhunelay "custom, the things which are done," used with
a negative, would be more accurate here.

Bomala could not be correctly used of actions felt to
be shameful and unnatural, actions of which no sane and
self-respecting person would be guilty. Neither does it
apply to "lack of dignity and decorum," nor to actions
of hazardous enjoyment, nor to pre-eminent sexual suc-
cess.

Thus, by the rules of usage, this word yields a native
classification of taboos into three groups: the genuine
taboos with supernatural sanction, the clear prohibitions
without supernatural sanction, and prohibitions of acts
which must not be done because they are shameful, dis-
gusting, or else dangerous.

463

MORALS AND MANNERS

The widest linguistic instrument serving to express the
distinction between lawful and forbidden, and applicable
to all the restrictions of our twelve classes, is given by the
pair of words bwoyna and gaga (good and bad). Such
general terms are naturally of loose application, cover a
wide range of meanings, and gain some precision only
from the context in which they are used. Thus, acts as
repugnant and unspeakable as brother-sister incest, and
as desirably dangerous as adultery with a chief's wife,
would be called gaga indiscriminately. Gaga means, in
one context, "morally unpardonable and only to be atoned
by suicide" j in another, "against the law, against cus-
tom" 5 in others, "indecorous," "unpleasant," "ugly,"
"disgusting," ^^shameful," "dangerous," "dangerously
daring," "dangerous and thus admirable."

Analogously, the word bwoyna means everything from
"palatable," "pleasant," "seductive," "attractive because
naughty" to "morally commendable because of the in-
herent hardships." An action which is strongly flavoured
with the tempting taste of forbidden fruit might, there-
fore, be plausibly labelled either bwoyna or gagay accord-
ing to the mood, context, situation, and emotional twist
of the sentence. So that these words — taken as isolated
fragments of vocabulary — afford only a vague index to
the moral statements, and do not give us even as much
help in defining native views and values as the word
bofnala.

There is, perhaps, no more dangerous instrument than
a native vocabulary for the unwary ethnographer to
handle, if he is not assisted by a thorough working knowl-

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THE MORALS OF SEX

edge of the native language, which alone enables him
to control the meaning of his terms through their ex-
tensive usage in various contexts. To note down isolated
terms with their translations into pidgin, and to parade
such crude translations as "native categories of thought"
is directly misleading. There has been no greater source
of error in Anthropology than the use of misunderstood
and misinterpreted fragments of a native vocabulary by
observers not thoroughly conversant with native tongues
and ignorant of the sociological nature of language. The
misleading effects of this are most harmful in the faulty
collection, in the field, of so-called systems of classi-
ficatory kinship terms, and in the reckless speculative use
of such fragmentary linguistic material.^

To one who uses native speech freely, a clear indica-
tion of the shades of meaning implicit in the words
bwoyna and gaga is given by their phonetic feeling-tone
in actual utterance. This, together with the emotional
inflexion of the whole sentence, the facial expression, the
accompanying gestures and significant behaviour, gives a
number of clearly marked distinctions in meaning. Thus,
to repeat, gaga can express genuine moral indignation
amounting to real horror, or serious considerations of a
purely utilitarian nature, or, spoken with a smirk, a
pleasant veniality. Such observations, however, though
of the greatest value to the ethnographer for his own
guidance, could be made into an unambiguous record only
by means of a phonograph and cinematograph, which,

1 This thesis will be developed in my forthcoming work on Psychology
of Kinship, announced in the International Library of Psychology (Kegan
Paul).

MORALS AND MANNERS

again, by the nature of the subject, it would be difficult
if not impossible to use.

Fortunately, once put on his guard and instructed by
direct observation of expressive tone and gesture, the
ethnographer can substantiate his results from other
material more easily framed into convincing documents.
There exist a number of circumlocutions and more ex-
plicit phrases, which the natives volunteer in elaborating
the meaning of bwoyna and gaga. Such elaborations recur
independently in the statements of different men from
different villages and districts. They constitute a body of
linguistic evidence coinciding with emotional distinctions,
and expressing these in a more communicable manner.

When speaking of the most serious offences — ^the
brother-sister incest, forbidden fornication within the
household, or open indecency between husband and wife
' — the natives say the word gaga very seriously, at times
with real horror in their inflexion. Then an informant
would be more explicit: bayse sene gaga ("this is very
bad"); or gaga^ g^g^y a repetition which intensifies the
sense of the word; or gaga mokita ("truly bad"), and
add: sene mwa^u bayse, gala tavagi ("this is very heavy,
we do not do it"). Or, again, when pressed to say what
a man would feel or do if he committed such a crime,
the native would usually answer: gala! — gala tavagi —
taytala ta^u ivagi — nanola bigaga, binagowa, imamata,
ilo^u: "No, we don't do it. If a man did it, his mind
having turned wrong and silly, he would wake up (i.e.
become sober and realize his crime) and commit suicide."
Or he might say more negatively: gala tavagi — tanum^

466

THE MORALS OF SEX

way lava, or gala tavagi — tafnwasawa^ higagahile: "We
don't do it and then forget," or "We don't do it and then
play round and remain light-hearted." Sometimes an
ordinary informant might refuse to discuss such matters
at all: bayse gaga^ gala talivala^ biga gaga: "This is bad,
we don't speak about it, it is bad talk." All these stock
phrases spoken seriously, or with disgust and anger, ex-
press the strongest disapproval. Experience and tact
teach the observer that such subjects must never be ap-
proached with direct reference to the informant, to his
sister or to his wife. Even the friendliest native, if acci-
dentally hurt by a tactless remark of this kind, immedi-
ately departs and remains away for days. All such sen-
tences and types of behaviour define the first meaning of
the word gaga.

Gaga in some contexts can, therefore, mean repugnant,
horrible, unspeakable 5 in others it refers to the naturally
unpalatable and to contemptible actions which shock the
natives' normal sexual impulse. Here the feeling-tone
ranges from simple disgust to half -amused malice. The
circumlocutions run as follows: gala tavagi; iminayna
nanogu; balagoba: "We don't do itj my mind turns sick
(if I did it)j I would vomit." Tonagowa bayse si
vavagi: "These are the acts of a mentally deficient per-
son." Gala tavagi y kada mwasila: "We don't do it, be-
cause we are ashamed." Senegaga — makawala mayna
fofu: "Very bad — smells like excrement." Makawala
ka^ukwa — tomwota gala: "In the fashion of a dog — ^not
of a man." That is, actions worthy of a dirty animal
and not of a human being.

467

MORALS AND MANNERS

They can give definite reasons why sexual aberrations
are bad: in sodomy, the disgusting nature of excrement 5
in exhibitionism, a contemptible lack of shame and dig-
nity j in oral perversions, the unpleasant taste and smell.
All these sayings express the second meaning of the word
gagay "unnatural, disgusting, not worthy of a sound
human being." So used, it implies an sesthetic attitude
as well as a. moral one, and there is less feeling that
a traditional commandment has been broken than that a
natural law has been flouted.

Another class of sayings defines the word gaga as
meaning "dangerous." Gaga — Iglhuru^a matauna: tako-
kola bwaga^Uy kidama igisayda, sene mma^u — boge bika-
tumate: "Bad — because that man (the aggrieved man) is
angry 5 we are afraid of the sorcerer, if they see us
(doing it), the punishment would be heavy — already we
would be killed." Or again, gala tavagiy fela guya^Uy or
fela la mwala: "We don't do it because of the chief," or
"because of the husband." Here bad means "dangerous,
exposing to revenge, that which provokes the anger of
the injured."

Finally, speaking of minor taboos we would be told:
Gaga fela bomala bagula: "Bad because of the taboo of
the garden." Gaga fela kabilia: tavagi — boge iyousi
kayala: "Bad, because of war: if we do it — already the
spear hits us." Here the word gaga qualifies a number of
actions as undesirable and to be avoided, because of their
specific consequences.

From this it can be seen that the classification of moral
values indicated in the use of the words bwoyna and gaga

468

SEXUAL ABERRATIONS

roughly corresponds to that derived from the word
bofnala.

We will now give such details concerning the taboos
on our list as have not been mentioned in this and the
foregoing chapters, taking them in the following order:
in the next two sections, the first group of our classifi-
cation, general sexual prohibitions j in sections five and
six, sociological restrictions on sexual freedom.

THE CENSURE OF SEXUAL ABERRATIONS

The widest class of sexual activity excluded from native
life is that comprising aberrations of the sexual impulse
(No. I of the list in sec. 2). The natives regard such
practices as bestiality, homosexual love and intercourse,
fetishism, exhibitionism, and masturbation as but poor
substitutes for the natural act, and therefore as bad and
only worthy of fools. Such practices are a subject for
derision, tolerant or scathing according to mood, for
ribald jokes and for funny stories. Transgressions are
rather whipped by public contempt than controlled by
definite legal sanctions. No penalties are attached to
them, nor are they believed to have any ill results on
health. Nor would a native ever use the word taboo
{bomala) when speaking of them, for it would be an
insult thus to assume that any sane person would like to
commit them. To ask a man seriously whether he had
indulged in such practices would deeply wound his vanity
and self-regard, as well as shock his natural inclination.

469

MORALS AND MANNERS

Vanity would be especially wounded, by the implication
that he must be unable to procure the full natural enjoy-
ment of his impulse if he has to resort to such substitutes.
The Trobriander's contempt for any perversion is similar
to his contempt for the man who eats inferior or impure
things in place of good, clean food, or for one who suflFers
hunger because there is nothing in his yamhouse.

The following are typical remarks on the subject of
perversions: "No man or woman in our village does it.'^
"No one likes to penetrate excrement." "No one likes
a dog better than a woman." "Only a tonagowa (idiot)
could do it." "Only a tonagowa masturbates. It is a
great shame j we know then that no woman wants to copu-
late with him J a man who does it, we know, cannot get
hold of a woman." In all native statements the unsatis-
factory nature of a substitute or makeshift is emphasized,
and the implication is of poverty as well as of mental
and sexual deficiency. The natives would also quote in-
stances such as that of Orato'u, the village clown of
Omarakana, deformed and defective in speech j the sev-
eral albinos and a few specially ugly women j and say that
such people, but not an ordinary man or woman, might
practise one perversion or another.

Of course, we know that such statements of a general
and absolute rule express a figment, an ideal, which, in
reality, is only imperfectly satisfied. Most of these aber-
rations are practised, though to a very limited extent, just
as the deficient and ugly are not entirely excluded from
the normal exercise of their sexual functions (see also
ch. X, sec. 2).

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SEXUAL ABERRATIONS

Let us now consider different types of perversion.

Homosexuality. — ^This orientation of the sexual im-
pulse, if it exists at all among the Trobrianders, can be
found only in its more spiritual manifestation, that is, in
emotional and Platonic friendships. It is allowed by
custom, and is, indeed, usual, for boy friends to embrace
one another, to sleep together on the same couch, to walk
enlaced or arm-in-arm. In the personal friendships which
to the natives naturally express themselves by such bodily
contacts, strong preferences are displayed. Boys are often
seen in couples: Monakewo and Toviyamata, Mekala'i
and Tobutusawa, Dipapa and Burayama, most of whom
are now familiar to my readers, were constantly to be
seen together. Sometimes such a friendship is just a
passing whim, but it may survive and mature into a
permanent relationship of mutual affection and assistance,
as did that between Bagido'u and Yobukwa'u, and, I was
told, between Mitakata and Namwana Guya'u before
these two became implacable enemies. The word
lubaygUy "my friend," is used for such close alliances
between man and man, and it is remarkable that this word
also designates the love relation between man and woman.
But it would be as erroneous to consider this identity in
language as implying an identity in emotional content as
it would be to assume that every time a Frenchman uses
the word amiy a homosexual relation is implied, simply
because of its connotation when used by one sex of an-
other. In France, as in the Trobriands, context and situ-
ation distinguish the two uses of the word ami iluhaygu)
and makes them into two semantically different words.

MORALS AND MANNERS

Difficult as it is exactly to draw the line between pure
^'friendship" and "homosexual relation" in any society —
both because of laxity in definition and because of the diffi-
culty of ascertaining the facts — it becomes almost impos-
sible in a community such as the Trobriands. Personally,
I find it misleading to use the term "homosexuality" in the
vague and almost intentionally all-embracing sense that is
now fashionable under the influence of psycho-analysis
and the apostles of ^^Urning*^ love. If inversion be de-
fined as a relationship in which detumescence is regularly
achieved by contact with a body of the same sex, then the
male friendships in the Trobriands are not homosexual,
nor is inversion extensively practised in the islands. For,
as we know, the practice is really felt to be bad and
unclean because it is associated with excreta, for which
the natives feel a genuine disgust. And while the ordi-
nary caresses of affection are approved as between mem-
bers of the same sex, any erotic caresses, scratching, nib-
bling at eyelashes, or labial contact would be regarded
as revolting.

As we have said, there is always some discrepancy be-
tween theory and practice 5 but in estimating the impor-
tance of exceptions, we must allow for unnatural condi-
tions of life and the influence of other civilizations.
Many natives are, under the present rule of whites,
cooped up in gaol, on mission stations, and in plantation
barracks. Sexes are separated and normal intercourse
made impossible 5 yet an impulse trained to function regu-
larly cannot be thwarted. The white man's influence
and his morality, stupidly misapplied where there is no

472

SEXUAL ABERRATIONS

place for it, creates a setting favourable to homosexuality.
The natives are perfectly well aware that venereal disease
and homosexuality are among the benefits bestowed on
them by Western culture.

Although it is impossible for me to quote any well-
authenticated instance of this perversion from the old
times, I have no doubt that sporadic cases have always
occurred. Indeed, the existence of such expressions as
ikaye fofu: "he copulates excrement," ikaye fwala: "he
penetrates rectum," and the well-defined moral attitude
towards it, are sufficient evidence of this. Some inform-
ants would go so far as to admit that homosexuality had
been practised formerly, but they would always insist that
it was only by mentally deficient people. On the whole,
therefore, it is clear that this prohibition is not imposed
upon an unwilling moral acceptance, but is well en-
trenched in the feeling and natural impulse of the natives.
How far this attitude is correlated with the wide and
varied opportunities for normal intercourse j how far it
is true that homosexuality is more efficiently eradicated by
derision than by heavy penalties, are questions which can
only be submitted as a subject for further observations
in the field.^

Bestiality. — This is derided as an unclean and unsatis-
factory makeshift, even more incongruous and comical
than inversion. It is remarkable that among a totemic
people — who claim affinity with animals, and treat the pig
as a member of the household — animal sodomy should

^ Cf. the writer's Sex and Repression in Savage Societies, 1927, where
the problem has been discussed at length in part ii.

473

MORALS AND MANNERS

still be regarded as a dirty and unnatural practice. The
natives see no continuity or relation between totemic mar-
riage and intercourse, on the one hand, as these took place
in mythological times, and, on the other, what might be
called totemic fornication at the present day.

A well-documented case of bestiality is on record, how-
ever, concerning a man who copulated with a dog. It is
noteworthy that the case is famous throughout the dis-
trict, that the name of the man, all the circumstances, and
even the name of the dog "Jack" are household words in
every village. It is also interesting that, while it is always
described or alluded to with considerable amusement,
there are clear indications that the matter would not be in
the least amusing if it concerned oneself or a kinsman
or friend. "If I did it, or any one of my maternal kins-
men or friends, I would commit suicide." Yet the culprit,
Moniyala, has lived down his shame. He leads a happy
existence in Sinaketa, where I had the pleasure of meeting
him, and having a long conversation with him. The sub-
ject of his past lapse, however, must never be mentioned
in his presence, for, the natives say, if he heard anyone
speaking about it he would commit lo^u (suicide by jump-
ing from a tree).

The circumstances of this case were as follows: Moni-
yala was serving with a trader who owned a male dog
called Jack. The two became friendly and, one day,
a girl saw Moniyala sodomizing the dog on the beach.
A scandal broke out, the native missionary preacher
brought the matter before the white resident magistrate
who placed Moniyala in gaol for six months. After his

474

SEXUAL ABERRATIONS

release Moniyala signed on for plantation work abroad
and stayed on the mainland of New Guinea for several'
years. When he came back he was able to brazen it out;
but everybody seems to think that, in old days, he would
have committed suicide. The natives agree that a dog
is worse than a pig, the former being the uncleaner animal.

Sadism and masochism. — Whether these complemen-
tary perversions play a large part in the sexual life of the
natives I am unable to say. The cruel forms of caress —
scratching, biting, spitting — to which a man has to submit
to a greater extent even than the woman, show that, as
elements in eroticism, they are not absent from native love-
making. On the other hand, flagellation as an erotic
practice is entirely unknown; and the idea that cruelty,
actively given or passively accepted, could lead, of itself
alone, to pleasant detumescence is incomprehensible, nay
ludicrous, to the natives. I should say, therefore, that
these perversions do not exist in a crystallized form.

Fellatio. — ^This is probably practised in the intimacy
of love-making (see above, ch. x, sec. 12). Receiving my
information exclusively from men, I was told that no
male would touch the female genitals in this manner, but,
at the same time, I was assured thzt fenilinctus was ex-
tensively practised. I do not feel convinced, however, of
the truth of this masculine version. The expression,
ikanumwasi kalu momonay "lapping up the sexual dis-
charges," designates both forms of fellatio.

Masturbation {ikivayni kwila: "he manipulates penis,"
isulumomoni: "he makes semen boil over") is a recog-
nized practice often referred to in jokes. The natives

475

MORALS AND MANNERS

maintain, however, that it would be done only by an idiot
{tonagowa) or one of the unfortunate albinos, or one
defective in speech 5 in other words, only by those who
cannot obtain favours from women. The practice is
therefore regarded as undignified and unworthy of a man,
but in a rather amused and entirely indulgent manner.
Exactly the same attitude is adopted towards female
masturbation (ikivayni wila: "she manipulates cunnus"j
il?asi wila o yamala: "she pierces vagina with her hand").

Nocturnal follutions and dreams have already been
mentioned (see ch. xii, sec. i). They are regarded, as
we know, as the result of magic and a proof of its effec-
tiveness.

Exhibitionism is regarded by the natives with genuine
contempt and disgust: this has already been made clear
in the above description of the manner of dressing and
the careful adjustment of the male pubic leaf and femi-
nine grass skirt.

In the treatment of these deviations of the sexual im-
pulse, it is impossible to draw a rigid line between the use
of certain practices — such as fellatio, passionate and
exuberant caresses, interest in the genitals — when they are
used as preliminary and preparatory sexual approaches
on the one hand, and as definite perversions on the other.
The best criterion is whether they function as a part of
courting, leading up to normal copulation, or whether
they are sufficient by themselves for the production of
detumescence. It is well to remember in this context that
the nervous excitability of the natives is much less than
ours, and their sexual imagination is relatively very

476

MODESTY

sluggish j that excitation and tumescence are usually
achieved only by the direct visual, olfactory, or tactual
stimulus of the sexual organs 3 and that orgasm, in man or
woman, requires more bodily contact, erotic preliminaries,
and, above all, direct friction of the mucous membranes
for its production. It is, therefore, plausible to assume
that preparatory erotic approaches with the natives would
have less tendency to pass into autonomous acts, that is
to develop into perversions, than is the case among ner-
vously more excitable races.

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Full text of "The sexual life of savages in north-western Melanesia; an ethnographic account of courtship, marriage and family life among the natives of the Trobriand Islands, British New Guinea"

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